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In this Issue:
· FY 2020 City Budget Approved
· Security Measures at DSD
· BuildSA News
· DSD Parking Lot Overflow
· Approved Ordinances
· Legislative Update
· Online Resources
· Performance Measures
· Department News
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FY 2020 City Budget Approved
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On Sept. 12, 2019, City Council
adopted the
FY 2020 City of San Antonio
Budget. The new budget will be effective on Oct. 1.
The Development Services
Department (DSD) will benefit from the FY 2020 budget by adding
15 new positions needed
to address work without permits around the city, regulation of
short-term rental properties and land-use regulation of areas
surrounding military bases. The new positions are as follows:
· Land Development – (1) Engineering Construction Inspector, (1)
Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Military Protection Areas, (1)
Short-Term Rentals, (1) Senior Planner – Addressing, and (1)
Senior Engineering Associate – Supplemental Street Lights
· Field Services – Inspections – (4) Inspectors, (1) Specialist, and (1)
Supervisor; all to make up the Strike Team
· Plan Review –
(1) Senior Development Services Specialist – Completeness and
Assignment Review Team (CAR), and (1) Extraterritorial
Jurisdiction Military Protection Areas
· Support Services – (1) Senior Management Analyst – Fiscal, and (1)
Special Projects Manager – BuildSA.
Additionally, there are no increased
fees, and no reductions to the Development Services Fund.
The General Fund will exhibit
efficiencies with Code Enforcement reductions of rental of
facilities (recent moves to the new city service centers), and
some funds related to abatement. These reductions will not affect
any services to our community.
Overall, this is good news as we
have a lot of work to do, and soon we will have added resources
to support DSD’s mission.
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New Security Measures at DSD
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In an effort to enhance safety
at the Cliff Morton Development & Business Center for our
customers and staff, DSD recently implemented new security
measures.
Coming in, customers will notice
metal detectors and security personnel with wands scanning all
entering the facility, a set up similar to that found in Council
Chambers and City Hall. All access will be funneled through the
main front entrance. When visiting the office, be sure to account
for some additional time as you make plans to visit us for
permits, meetings, and Board and Commission hearings.
In addition, the second floor
reception area (Room 235) is no longer available as a waiting
room. For customers who need to meet with city staff, please
check in at the Meet and Greet desk on the first floor, after
going through the metal detectors, for appointments.
We appreciate your patience and
thank you for helping us make our building a safer place to do
business.
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Development Services continues
diligent work on the implementation of our BuildSA software
system. BuildSA will eventually replace and consolidate various
systems utilized today to deliver our services. As our new system
is developed, we remain completely committed to our overall
goals: meeting our cycle times; delivering quality service and,
most importantly, partnering with you, our valued customers, to
help you through the permitting process.
Aug. 26, 2019 saw the BuildSA
roll-out of escrow accounts
for our Land Development customers. This new service is available
for organizations and individuals, not only saving them time but
offering the availability to deposit funds and pay fees online
24/7.
Additional news is the
functionality of purchasing garage/yard sale permits online using
BuildSA. This exciting service becomes effective today, Oct. 1,
and is also available to customers 24/7.
The software implementation
effort continues through next year. By winter of 2020,
Development Services will be utilizing one system for Land
Development, Code Enforcement, and Building and Fire Marshal
applications. The implementation of a new system offers
opportunities to streamline our application process for our
customers. Over the last few weeks, we’ve had an opportunity
to see Building License Registration applications in BuildSA and
we are excited for our customers to see and experience the
results as well.
In looking ahead, we remain
strongly committed toward creating an innovative and
user-friendly system for you, our valued customers.
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Now Available - Garage Permits
Online
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Starting Oct. 1, 2019, customers
will have access to purchase Garage Sale Permits online using BuildSA! From home or office and
24/7, customers can apply online and print their garage sale
permit and decals with ease.
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Did you know? BuildSA Training is
Available
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BuildSA training is available
every month at the One Stop. This month's training is Creating
a TIA Record. Training takes place on Oct. 4; be sure to sign up at: DSDBuildSASupport@sanantonio.gov.
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Visit the BuildSA training schedule for upcoming classes,
including creating plats, zoning records, refunds, and more. When
registering,
be sure to include the course and
date you are signing up for.
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DSD Parking Lot #2 is Open
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DSD Parking Lot #2 1902 S. Alamo
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Often times the parking lot at the One Stop is
crowded, with no place to park. Typically the shortage of
parking is when the department is holding board and
commission meetings. To help with parking, please use the
parking lot across the street. Be sure to use the cross
walk for your safety!
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The Latest on Military
Protection Areas
The City of San Antonio is
continuing to move forward with work on the ETJ Military
Protection Areas. The City Council approved the ETJMPA
regulations, maps, overlays (MLOD, MSAO, AHOD, and ERZD), and
Bexar County Interlocal Agreement on Sept. 19, 2019. The
City Council approval was in line with the previous Planning
Commission and Zoning Commission recommendations.
More information on the ETJMPA
can be found on our website.
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Digital Billboards
In February of this year, the
City was approached by Clear Channel Outdoor with a proposal
requesting to make the 13 existing digital billboards, within
city limits, double-sided. In exchange, 265 junior (less than 100
sq. ft.) billboards would be permanently removed. In addition,
four billboards would be taken down for each new digital face
specifically stating one of them would be in a scenic, urban or
historic corridor. One important note – no additional digital
billboard structures would be allowed in San Antonio with this
ordinance.
A task force comprised of sign
companies, billboard companies, San Antonio Board of Realtors,
home builders, American Institute of Architects, San Antonio
Apartment Association, Habitat for Humanity, Scenic San Antonio,
and various community representatives was formed to discuss
proposed changes. Simultaneously, a survey was created to hear
from the community as part of the SASpeakUp process.
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Presented on Sept. 19 to City
Council, an ordinance was adopted that incorporated the changes
proposed by Clear Channel Outdoor.
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Legislative Update - HB 2439
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House Bill (HB) 2439 restricts the ability of a municipality to
regulate the use, installation, or method of using building
materials. The bill includes several exemptions including
Military Lighting Overlays, buildings in designated Historic
Districts, Local Historic Landmarks, River Improvement Overlays
(RIOs), and World Heritage Buffers. In addition, the bill
provides an exemption for “building[s] located in a place or area
designated for its historical, cultural, or architectural
importance and significance by a governmental entity, if
designated before April 1, 2019.” DSD worked closely with
the City Attorney’s Office, Planning Department, and Office of
Historic Preservation in order to make a determination as to the
applicability of the exemptions in the bill.
Based on the exemptions outlined
above, HB 2439 includes exemptions for building material
regulations in Neighborhood Conservation Districts (NCDs) and
Corridor Districts placed on or before April 1. The bill
does not allow building material regulations for NCDs and
Corridor Districts created or modified after April 1. It is
important to note that, although HB 2439 removes the ability of
the City to enforce building materials restrictions in new Corridors
and NCDs, the bill does not remove the ability to enforce other
provisions of these districts such as fence and sign materials,
setbacks, landscaping, color palette, and other dimensional and
design aspects. A Rule Interpretation Determination (RID 2019-005) and an Information Bulletin (IB 575) have been issued to address these issues.
HB 2439 also contains an
exemption for local amendments to the model codes, and DSD is
continuing to apply local amendments to the building and trades
codes, which were adopted by City Council.
If you have any questions or
concerns regarding these changes, please contact the Policy
Administration Section at UDCAmendments@sanantonio.gov.
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The following Information
Bulletins (IB) updates and new Rule Interpretation
Determinations (RID) have been added to the documents online
section of DSD's website:
IB 575 was developed to inform
our customers of the impacts of House Bill (HB) 2439 for
Neighborhood Conservation Districts (NCDs) and Corridor
Districts. This IB describes and clarifies the incorporated
changes to the NCDs and Corridor Districts in order to address
changes to state law made by HB 2439.
This IB provides guidance to
developers for consideration of solid waste services for
locations within the San Antonio City Limits.
This RID is a customer and staff
clarification effort to incorporate changes to the Neighborhood
Conservation Districts and Corridor Overlays in order to address
changes to state law made by House Bill (HB) 2439. HB 2439 was
signed by Governor Abbott on June 14, 2019, and became effective
Sept. 1, 2019.
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For a complete list of resources,
visit the following sites:
**Information Bulletins located in
Documents Online are numbered by section. The assigned numbers
are generally categorized as outlined below:
· 100s - Plan Review
· 200s - Permits and Inspections
· 300s - BuildSA
· 500s - Land Development
· 800s - Code Enforcement
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Performance Measures & Permit
Report
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Performance Measures
The performance measures report
is available online.
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Job Opportunities: If you are interested in joining our department,
apply online.
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For new hires, promotions, and
retirement news, click here.
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