Even though we're not done yet, today marked a HUGE achievement in our quest to build our home.
As of about 3pm today, the ECA Slide (Environmentally Critical Area) department approved our permit application! This leaves only the Drainage Department to appease.
This is major news for a number of reasons.
Of the two departments we resubmitted for on April 11, the consequences of failing the ECA Slide department was much greater. It could mean more re-engineering walls, or getting various approvals from different neighbors. The Drainage Department, on the other hand, would just require us to move around a drainage pond or two...a relatively simpler task.
Additionally, Jim Mattoon, the reviewer in the ECA Slide Department, is the Senior member of the review team, so his approval is paramount.
We're tempering our excitement a bit, however, because of the two departments, we believe that the Drainage Department is the more likely to reject our plans. This results mostly from the City's own confusion. Drainage plans are a new component of the permitting process, and Michelle Macias, while she's been excellent in the communication realm, is in a bit over her head when it comes to reviewing the plans. Really, by no fault of her own, except for lack of experience, but it very well could send us to Round 5.
However, should we reach a Round 5, we expect that round to progress much more quickly.
Thus, we've revised our estimates as follows:
IF we successfully pass the Drainage Department, we should know by Monday at the latest. This puts us at a mid- to late-May groundbreaking.
IF we fail the Drainage Department, we should be able to resubmit in two weeks, and have the plans approved within two weeks of that date, thus only pushing us out a month. This gives us a groundbreaking of no later than the end of June!
Up Next: The anticipation builds...
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