1. All About The Building Services Division

By: Donald Kukla, Building Inspector

The main goal of PGM’s Building Services Division is to ensure compliance and implementation of the technical standards of the Florida Building Code (FBC) and the Hillsborough County Construction Code.  The duties of the Division staff include the review and processing of all building permit applications, inspection of all building-related construction in unincorporated Hillsborough County, investigation of code compliance complaints, and coordination with state and federal agencies on hazard mitigation issues.

Building Permitting and Contractor Licensing
Hillsborough County licenses/registers all contractors who perform work in a regulated trade in the unincorporated County through the Division’s Contractor Licensing Team, This licensing is required by the County Construction Code and by the Florida Statutes, which is implemented by Florida’s Department of Business & Professional Responsibility.  To be licensed, contractors are required to file a complete application, obtain approval of that application from the licensing Board, pay appropriate fees and pass the examinations for their licensing category.

Building permits must be obtained either by a licensed contractor or a homeowner, under Florida Statute 489.103(7).  More information on building permits is available online on the Building Permits webpages or by visiting their main office in County Center or their satellite office at the SouthShore Regional Service Center. When a property owner gets a building permit instead of a contractor, the owner must directly supervise all work within the scope of the building permit and be responsible for complying with the Florida Building Code, the Hillsborough County Construction Code, and other requirements in the Florida Statues.

The Building Permitting and Contractor Licensing Sections offer several online services for contractors and residents:

• Building Permitting, Inspection and Certificate of Occupancy Status Online System
• Monthly Permit Request Reports
• Check Your Contractor’s Licensing Online
• Building Plan Electronic Submittal System

Code Compliance Team
The Division’s Code Compliance Team performs the vital task of enforcing the Florida Building Code, the Hillsborough County Construction Code, and the National Flood Insurance Program.  The Code Compliance Team, with support from the Division’s inspectors, ensures that the public’s health, safety, and welfare are not compromised. Usually when a member of the Code Compliance Team notifies an affected contractor or owner about a violation, the contractor or owner corrects the issue and the violation.  However, when adjudication is necessary, the various volunteer Boards of Adjustment, Appeals and Examiners take over and hear the violation.  These Boards agree with the Code Compliance Team’s recommendations more than 95% of the time. 

If you suspect you have witnessed a code violation, you can download and fill out the online Code Violation Complaint Form.

Hazard Mitigation Team
The Division’s Hazard Mitigation Team ensures that all building permits are in compliance with the county’s Flood Damage Control Regulations (Hillsborough County Construction Code, Chapter 3).  When a building permit application is submitted for construction in a special flood hazard area, floodway, or flood velocity zone, it is reviewed by specially-trained Division staff to ensure the design flood elevation or approved design elements occur as required in these regulations. 

The Team’s continuing diligence in implementing these regulations is a major contributing factor behind Hillsborough County regularly receiving a high rating by the National Flood Insurance Program’s Insurance Services Office (ISO).  Currently, the County is within the top 3% of all municipalities in the nation for its flood mitigation efforts, which results in residents within the unincorporated county receiving a combined $5 million dollars in discounts annually on their federal flood insurance rates.

2. Hazard Mitigation Leads New Coastal Storm Surge Awareness Effort

County Commissioner Chairman Ken Hagan joined members of the community-wide Local Mitigation Strategy Working Group, residents and staff from PGM, the County’s Emergency Management Department and other departments last week at Williams Park in Riverview to unveil the first of the County’s new coastal storm surge signs. The project is an effort by the County to help residents understand the danger of coastal storm surge from a hurricane. This public awareness project is among the few and largest of its kind in Florida.

This project was headed up by the Hazard Mitigation Section of the Planning & Growth Management Department, who has been working on the effort since 2002.  The County's Emergency Management Office, other county agencies, and Local Mitigation Strategy Working Group also provided technical and funding assistance for the program.  The Local Mitigation Strategy Working Group is a community-wide committee of governmental and community representatives established to reduce the area’s vulnerability to disaster.

The signs were created to help residents understand the danger of coastal storm surge.  For example, the greatest potential for loss of life related to a hurricane is from the storm surge, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).  All five of the County’s evacuation zones are vulnerable to storm surge. And, coastal storm surge in some areas of Hillsborough County could be 13 to 17 feet above the ground in a major hurricane. 

To demonstrate what this really means, Hillsborough County has placed 30 of these storm surge signs in prominent locations in unincorporated county that have been identified as having major storm surge risk. The signs are posted 13 feet above the ground to show how high the water could rise in that location.
 
The sign project was approved by the County Commission in December 2007 and is funded by a Department of Homeland Security grant for emergency management public education and outreach, through the County’s Emergency Management Department.