October 11, 2022; Starting today, all Hurricane Ian Damage related emergency permits will be issued at City Hall on paper and not thru the EnerGov Permitting system. Staff is also working on adding an additional permitting site at the Cape Coral Art Center off Coronado Pkwy to deal with the volume from emergency permits. That location will come online soon. Also, City Staff is working with IT to create a special portal in EnerGov to handle emergency permits that will phased in the future.
Contractors will come to City Hall where they will apply for those permits IN PERSON. Most permits will be issued on the spot, without review and those requiring review will be issued within 1 to 3 business days. The priority will be placed on those permits to get pushed out. As you come into City Hall, there will be a cap of the number of emergency permits you can apply for at one time. This is being put in place to be fair to all of those applying and please be patient with the process.
All emergency permits inspections will be scheduled thru a special number, that number is 239-574-0555. Those inspections performed on the job site will either be signed off as complete on the permit card, on site, or a paper rejection tag with notes will be left on site. THIS IS FOR EMERENGY PERMITS ONLY.
At the press conference today City Manager Hernandez stated that The City will not be accepting NEW PERMITS for 30 days. This will allow staff to work on existing permits in the system and deal with the influx of emergency permits. All permits currently applied for WILL continued to be worked on and inspections and CO’s will be taking place.
Please see the below documents outlining the emergency permitting process and the paper applications.
Emergency Permitting Procedures – Click Here
Work Class A – Minor Damage – Click Here
Work Class B – Major Damage – Click Here
Work Class C – Structural Damage – Click Here
Hold Harmless Permit Affidavit – Click Here
For more Emergency Permit Info please visit: https://www.capecoral.gov/government/city_government/city_manager/office_of_communications/hurricane_ian_recovery/emergency_permitting.php
Work Not Requiring a Permit:
- Removal of debris from the inside of the structure
- Minor demolition to prevent injury or prevent further damage to buildings Structural shoring and bracing
- Replacement of broken glass within existing framing for windows and doors. Repair/Replacement of soffit and gutters
- Minor non-structural repairs made to the exterior of structures
- Repair of minor water leaks that do not involve structural, mechanical, or electrical systems.
These procedures are designed to facilitate permitting during a major catastrophic event. These procedures may be subject to change without notice, depending on circumstances that may occur during recovering from the catastrophic event.
The FEMA 50% Rule is still in effect and will be enforced during the review.
The City is advising residents who own a home that was built before 1981 not to make repairs until December 1, 2022. The 50% Rule, a regulation of the National Flood Insurance Program, requires that structures with damage exceeding 50% of their market value be rebuilt consistently with the current flood elevation and Florida Building Code. Cape Coral’s City Council is expediting the approval of an ordinance that may remove regulations, to make it easier on the homeowner when determining calculations for the 50% rule.