Building and Safety Dept. Introduces New Improvements to Streamline Permit Process

Councilmember Krekorian with city's Engineering Bureau Chief, Ifa Kashefi, viewing the Building and Safety Department's new self-service kiosk. | Photo/CD2

LOS ANGELES - Councilmember Krekorian toured the Dept. of Building and Safety's Van Nuys office last week, learning about the department's new improvements to improve customer service and simplify the permit process.

The city department is charged with issuing building permits, conducting building plan checks, providing zoning information, carrying out inspections and code enforcement and more. They serve more than 362,000 walk-in customers annually and have issued more than 138,000 permits with an estimated valuation of $4.5 billion this year.

 

In order to accommodate the customer volume and high demand of services, LADBS has implemented self-serve stations to better direct customers to the appropriate divisions and lines, streamlining the waiting time to less than 30 minutes for 65% of its customers. With the launch of its online permit application and the addition of pilot programs such as ePlan Check, the city is on track to process more permits than at any point during the Great Recession, getting the city back on track to where it was prior to the economic downturn.

 

In Council District 2, permits spiked this year as well. According to numbers from the LADBS, 1,480 permits were issued since January of this year with a total valuation of more than $132 million.

North Hollywood Hosts Town Hall

Councilmember Krekorian speaking to the members of the North Hollywood West Neighborhood Council and community stakeholders. | Photo/CD2

 

Neighborhood council board members and more than a dozen stakeholders received insight from the councilmember about issues facing District 2 and other citywide updates. Illegal dumping and illegal parking, and what his office has done to alleviate those strains, was among the most popular points of conversation. 

 

In August, the community identified problematic sections, such as Raymer Street, that had been a site ridden with industrial dumping, bulky items, graffiti and unkempt land by business owners. Councilmember Krekorian and staff, working in conjunction with local nonprofit North East Valley Graffiti Busters, helped clean the area while the Dept. of Transportation worked to install overnight parking restriction signs on Saticoy Street east of Bellaire Avenue, where recreational vehicles and trailers parked along the street had been a persistent safety concern.

In recent months, the Noho West community, with help from Councilmember Krekorian, also initiated several beautification efforts to promote a cleaner neighborhood, hosting small scale community clean ups throughout the area - most recently along Coldwater Canyon north of Sherman Way and the Whitsett Slope. Other improvements included a crack down on RV and truck parking north of Vanowen on Coldwater Canyon, the installation of the new pocket park on Fulton Avenue and street resurfacing.

 

The event, organized by Councilmember Paul Krekorian and Assemblymember Adrin Nazarian, included two dozen neighbors looking for information from city, county and community agency representatives who provided information about the variety of services available to the senior community. Those include in-home assistance, nutrition services, pet companion programs, healthcare management, transportation services for the elderly and more.

"As our moms, dads, neighbors and others enter their Golden Years, obtaining proper care and nutrition, affordable housing and more can be a challenge," Councilmember Krekorian said. "Our most effective goal is to empower and enrich their lives by ensuring their needs are met and we are as supportive as possible,"