Planning and Building Permit Technician City of Lafayette, CO City of Lafayette Building Division

Coloradochaptericc; Colorado; On-site; USD 45,000 - 55,000; Full time

Job summary

The City of Lafayette, Colorado is looking for a Permit Technician to support the Planning and Building Department. This role involves processing building permits, assisting customers, and ensuring compliance with municipal codes. The ideal candidate will have strong customer service skills and a background in building permits and planning. This position offers a unique opportunity to contribute to the city's growth and development while providing excellent service to the community.

Qualifications

• Three years of clerical experience with two years in technical building or planning.
• High school graduation with additional college-level education preferred.

Responsibilities

• Assist public with inquiries related to building permits and municipal code.
• Process building permits and contractor licenses according to prescribed processes.
• Coordinate permit processing and assist with public records requests.

Skills

Customer Service

Detail-oriented

Communication

Education

High School Diploma

Permit Technician Certification

Tools

Microsoft Office 365

Permitting Software

Job description

The City of Lafayette, Colorado is seeking a Permit Technician with experience processing Building Permits for both residential and commercial projects, along with experience in an office administrative setting. The ideal candidate is customer-focused, detail-oriented, customer-friendly and result driven.

This position is focused on providing excellent customer service to community members by email, phone, and in-person at the City Hall service counter. The City is experiencing a wide range of building activity, including new single-family dwellings and multi-family projects, new commercial buildings, and tenant finishes. With over 1,500 building permits processed each year, this is a great opportunity to play a key role in the City’s growth and development.

The incumbent performs a wide variety of complex and specialized technical and administrative work in support of the Planning and Building Department. The Permit Technician position is a front-line position that performs several administrative and technical tasks to support the land use, permitting, and licensing functions of the department. This position requires thorough knowledge of the building permit process, departmental procedures, and the administrative provisions of the International Building Code (IBC) and International Residential Code (IRC). The Permit Technician acts as the primary point of contact to assist customers by phone, email, or in person with general code information, information related to application and review processes, and application requirements and criteria for both building permit and development review submittals in addition to assisting with public records requests.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

Persons hired in this position must be able to perform the essential functions required by the position. The City of Lafayette reserves the right to modify or change the essential functions of this position at any time and the essential functions are not intended to be all-inclusive or restrictive.

Performs complex and specialized administrative work in support of the Planning and Building Department.
Assists the public with all inquiries relating to the department processes or municipal code requirements by researching the information needed and reporting back or by conferring with Building or Planning Division personnel and reporting back.
Processesquickbuildingpermits, other similar permits requiring limited technical review,andcontractorlicensesaccording to the prescribed process.
Explainspolicies,code requirements,ordinances andregulations tocontractors andthepublicthrough variouscommunication methods including phone, email, in-person and written responses.
Reviews,verifies,andprocessesdocumentsassociatedwithbuildingpermitsubmittals.
Processes requests from the public related to building code violations.
CoordinateswithotherCitydepartmentsforbuildingcode-relatedissues.
Facilitates permit processing by conducting permit intake, routing permits and plans for review, assisting with the coordination of permits within the permit processing system, contacting applicants as needed, verifying contractor and business license status, scheduling inspections, providing status updates, and assisting with permit closeout.
Reviews submitted building, engineering, and land use applications and materials to ensure documents are technically complete prior to acceptance by the City, including all attachments and fees
Verifies fees and revenues due to the department for services rendered and processes payments through appropriate software.
Codes payments as needed according to the prescribed process.
Assistsinadministrationofthebuildinginspectionprocess,assistinschedulingofinspections,andprocessdocumentsassociatedwiththeconstructionprocess.
Prepares monthly reports on permitting and fees, as well as reports as needed.
Perform website design, editing, and maintenance.
Assists with managing Department’s various web pages to ensure accuracy and completeness of content.
Attendstrainingsasneeded tomaintaincertifications.
Pursues continuous improvement by maintaining or creating forms, handouts, and procedures and by making recommendations involving areas of responsibility
Fulfillsinformationandresearchrequests, including public records requests.
Performsfiling,dataentry,scanningandvariousadministrativetasks.
Operates basic office machines such as copier, printer, scanner, computer, and postage tracking equipment.
Will serve as the main point of contact at the front counter for the Planning and Building Department.
Central point of contact for the Planning and Building Department. Provide quality customer service by assisting customers and through receiving incoming phone calls and routing calls appropriately.
Communicate efficiently and effectively to internal and external customers through face-to-face, phone and email interactions.
Foster and develop principled relationships with City staff, community partners and organizations.
Communicates with contractors, homeowners, designers, developers, and other members of the public under difficult circumstances.
May serveoninternalcommitteesandattend City offeredtrainings.
Performsrelatedworkasrequired.
TYPICAL QUALIFICATIONS

KNOWLEDGE:Advanced knowledge of modern office practices, procedures, and technology. Advanced knowledge of computers and electronic data processing. Advanced knowledge of vocabulary, grammar, punctuation, and spelling. Considerable knowledge of simple accounting and financial record keeping. Working knowledge of the statutes, rules, and regulations as they pertain to building permits in the State of Colorado.

SKILL:Skill in understanding and responding to customer service needs. Skill in typing on a computer at 40 words per minute. Skill in operation of computer, copier, printer, scanner, and postage tracking equipment. Skill in operation of basic computer software such as Microsoft Office 365, permitting software, and other record keeping software.

ABILITY:Coordinate manydifferenttasks,establish priorities, setdeadlinesand complete projects accordingly; adjust to shifts in priorities; learn to interpret and apply a variety of complex organizational policies and procedures; independently identify appropriate applications of a wide variety of complex written policies and procedures in circumstances not clearly described by written guidelines; apply judgment, discretion and initiative in performing complex work in a variety of projects with minimal supervision; independently initiate, draft, and prepare concise memoranda and correspondence; keep complex records and files; screen mail, telephone calls and visitors; project needs for office equipment and supplies; establish and maintain cooperative working relationships with co-workers and others. Ability to handle confidential information; work from broad direction with limited supervision; make decisions on building permit application packages. Ability to read, classify, and accurately process applications and documents according to the prescribed process. Ability to maintain a variety of financial records and files; work accurately and productively with frequent interruptions and deadlines. Ability to work well with culturally diverse people; establish and maintain effective working relationships with other employees, supervisors, other agencies, and the public; work well with varied and demanding people; provide written and oral communication in English. Ability to organize tasks and environment to maximize efficiency; focus attention on complex, routine, or repetitive tasks without losing focus or becoming distracted by external activities; adapt to interruptions, equipment failures, unusual demands or changing priorities. Ability to read, understand, and employ technical manuals and documents and complex analytical reports; employ safety procedures; handle stressful situations; and understand and follow written and oral instructions and procedures.

TRAINING:Highschoolgraduationortheequivalentwithadditionaleducationatthecollegelevel,andPermitTechnicianCertificationpreferred from the International Code Council or equivalent.

EXPERIENCE:Three years of increasingly responsible clerical experience, including two years of technical building, planning, or construction-related experience. Additional experience operating and administering a governmental permitting software is also desired.

Required

One year of work experience or formal training in planning, construction plan design or review, land use and building codes, surveying, construction, environmental sciences, or similar; or
One year of work experience in a customer-oriented or administrative position in an office setting; or
Any combination of related education, experience, certifications, and licenses that will result in a candidate successfully performing the essential functions of the job; and

Preferred

Prior work in local government, including part-time or internship experience.
Experience or formal training in planning, construction plan design or review, land use and building codes, surveying, construction, environmental sciences, or similar.
A degree from an accredited university in a field related to community or economic development, such as urban planning, architecture, public policy, or environmental or political sciences.
Experience with permit tracking and review software, such as GovBuilt, MyGov, and/or BlueBeam.
Ability to communicate in a second language prevalent in Boulder County
Certification with International Code Council (ICC) Certification as a Permit Technician or the ability to obtain this certification within twelve (12) months of hire.
SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS

Must be 18 years of age. Applicant must, as a condition of employment, pass all requirements of the hiring process including a background check and reference check.