Building Permits

If you can’t wait for the weather to change and you’ve got a big project planned for your home or cottage, your first stop should be your local municipality’s building department. Applying for a building permit isn’t just good sense, it’s the law and Dysart et al Building Official Karl Korpela says not doing so can cost you.

Applying for a building permit is an essential first step as Korpela told CanoeFM. He said with the new septic maintenance legislation and short term rental bylaws, his department is finding more illegal builds in the municipality.

He says his department takes a ‘carrot and stick’ approach, giving property owners a correct issues first, rather than jumping to next steps. Subsequent orders, though, come at a cost and applications for building permits will run double the normal fee.

Korpela also recommends working with local contractors and designers to make the process run smoothly.