By Josh Bergeron

josh.bergeron@salisburypost.com

Rowan County Commissioners have made sweeping changes to the Building Inspections Department as they look to deliver on a 2014 campaign promise to boost the pace of economic development.

Commissioners voted during their May 4 meeting to restructure the building inspections department and implement a new program called Build 24/7. The program is designed to allow major developments to speed through building plan approval. And it appears the City of Salisbury is following suit. However, no formal changes at the city level have been approved.

Now in place, the most touted of the commissioners’ approved changes is a $2,500 fee to have commercial building plans completely reviewed in 24 hours. The fee is in addition to the normal charge, which is 2 cents per square foot.

Commissioners Chairman Greg Edds, who helped craft the changes, said the speed of building plan approvals is critical for large projects.

“Time is not just money, but time is big money,” Edds said.

RowanWorks Economic Development Director Robert Van Geons similarly said time makes a difference in large projects.

“This heightened level of responsiveness and faster return is just another sign of how open for business Rowan County is,” Van Geons said. “It’s a big step for the county, and it’s not easy to do, even with an added fee. I think it’s a very positive step for the county’s reputation as being business friendly.”

Van Geons cited the progress of Agility Fuel Systems at Summit Corporate Center as an example of the potential for rapid building plan approval. Just a few weeks after commissioners and state government approved an incentive agreement with the company, Agility Fuel Systems had already started clearing the land and had started on construction.

The changes approved by commissioners also restructure the Building Inspections Department, with the biggest change being promoting two employees to the “senior inspector” level. The department’s director, Thomas O’Kelley, said senior inspectors would primarily focus on large, more complex developments.

Building plan reviews for commercial and industrial projects occur before construction can start. It can occur at the same time as zoning is appropriately adjusted to suit the development, O’Kelley said.

As inspectors focus attention on completing reviews of large-scale projects where developers pay a fee, Edds said commercial building plans not reviewed in 24 hours wouldn’t see a longer-than-usual wait time. O’Kelley said the current average for completing building plan reviews is 10 to 15 days. Edds said the changes would increase the speed at which commercial building plans are reviewed. The Build 24/7 program sets a goal of seven working days for all building plan reviews, even those who don’t pay the $2,500 fee.

The new Build 24/7 program doesn’t, however, address residential reviews. O’Kelley said residential plan reviews would not be completed as quickly as commercial reviews under the commissioners’ new initiative. The changes also don’t include hiring additional employees to review plans.

The city of Salisbury doesn’t have control over commercial building plan review, but Salisbury Planning and Development Services Manager Preston Mitchell said the city could adopt express review policies in other areas to speed up utility and zoning permits.

“It has been a City Council-level goal and something we’ve been wanting to do for the last couple of years,” Mitchell said. “We just haven’t been able to tackle it. … It would be irresponsible to not want to partner with the county for the benefit of the developers.”

Mitchell said he requested to meet with O’Kelley to discuss a way the city and county might be able to adopt coordinate building policies.

“I hope we can all look into further changes that could improve customer service to an even greater level,” Edds said. “This is something we have got to get down to a matter of hours.”

Contact reporter Josh Bergeron at 704-797-4246