Online tool can help Concord business and home owners

Last month, the city of Concord’s Community & Economic Development Department rolled out a new online resource called Permit Pal. I’m thrilled to see such a useful and well-done online tool available to residents and businesses.

Concord homeowners contemplating a kitchen remodel, a home addition or even an Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) can now get a wealth of information at a time and place convenient to them.

If you have work, school or other obligations during the Permit Center’s business hours, you can now start exploring online what is required to get your project started. You can enter your address, the type of project you’re planning and some other basic information that the program will guide you through.

Permit Pal then provides information about property zoning, development standards, parcel details, the type of permits required and an estimate of fees.

Once the results are displayed, you can download a PDF file for easy reference. If you’re ready to move forward with your project, you can take a printout down to the city’s Permit Center to review your Permit Pal details with staff to confirm or clarify any information.

If you’re considering starting a business or are already operating a business in Concord, you can jump online to Permit Pal, type in an address or click on the map, answer a few questions about the proposed business, and see whether that use is permitted, what permits would be required and the development standards.

If you’ve been contemplating a project at your property or have been thinking about starting or expanding a business in Concord, I encourage you to test drive the new Permit Pal tool at permitpal.cityofconcord.org.

If you have feedback or suggestions about Permit Pal, email me at jlaub.concordplanning@gmail.com or send one to Community & Economic Development director Andrea Ouse at andrea.ouse@cityofconcord.org.