View as Webpage

The Affordable Housing Team is a new addition to our department, specifically created in FY 2022 to coordinate, conduct, and monitor plan review and inspections for any permits receiving bond or grant funding by the national, state, and local affordable housing initiatives.

The City of San Antonio has been developing the affordable housing initiative since August 2017, to provide quality affordable housing to all citizens regardless of income level. This team was created in response to priorities laid out by City Council and the City Manager to facilitate this initiative.

Led by Jason Gray (photo), Project Manager - Housing Team, the team will continue to model the established goals, mission, and vision of the department to ensure the safety of the public while facilitating development for affordable housing projects. Customer service will be expanded to work closely with other City of San Antonio departments such as Neighborhood & Housing Services Department (NHSD) and San Antonio Housing Authority (SAHA).

The Unified Development Code update process continues and the deadline to submit proposed amendments is February 1.

To date, DSD has received and posted 80 amendments on our website. We have presented the UDC amendment process at four DSD Academies and four community meetings, in both English and Spanish, as a way to get the word out to the community.

Starting in February the Planning Commission Technical Advisory Committee will begin reviewing amendments that will ultimately be forwarded to City Council in October 2022 for consideration and approval.

Discussions at the Noise Ordinance Task Force meetings have centered on noise levels, locations of sound measurements, and enforcement. The pilot program that began in Oct. 2021 has been extended from three to six months. As of the week of Jan. 19, there have been 4,955 calls to SAPD (non-emergency number), 1,815 call investigated by Code Enforcement, 222 violation confirmed and referred to SAPD, and 118 citations issued by SAPD. In addition, there area 93 locations in which Code Enforcement has been unable to access safely.

The Noise Ordinance Task Force continues to meet every three weeks to discuss recommendations of changes to the current noise ordinance. Next meeting will be virtual (WebEx) and is scheduled for Feb. 1, starting at 6 p.m. All meetings are open to the public and information is available on SASpeakUp.

Submitted by Councilman John Courage on Aug. 8, 2019, this Council Consideration Request (CCR) asks for DSD to review and amend Section 21-52 (a)(6) of the Local Government Code to prohibit exterior overnight construction within 300 feet of an inhabited residential property.  

Development Services Department (DSD) has been meeting with stakeholders throughout the last year and a half (we had to pause due to the pandemic in 2020) to provide amendments to the construction noise ordinance to City Council. The proposed ordinance not only sets work hours for construction throughout the city, but also provides means for working outside of these hours when approved by DSD. Part of the approval process includes a requirement that all residents, within 300 ft. of the construction site, be notified of the dates and times work will be completed outside the set work hours (Mon. - Fri. 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Saturdays 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Sundays 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.).

To help us refine refine this notification process, we are asking your input by answering a four-question survey at SASpeakUp. The survey will be open until Feb. 15, since the item is tentatively scheduled to be heard by City Council in mid-February. For more information, you can visit our website or if you have questions, please contact Jeremy McDonald at 210.207.0265. 

The Development Services Department (DSD) will begin the adoption process of the 2021 International Code Council (ICC) building, fire, and property safety codes and the 2020 National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) National Electric Code (NEC) in February 2022.

The 2021 ICC and NFPA are updated every three years. The following codes will be adopted and amended as part of Ch. 10 of the Municipal Code: Building, Existing Building, Fire, Mechanical, Plumbing, Fuel Gas, and Energy, and the NEC 2021 and 2020 editions, respectively. The fire code will be adopted as part of Ch. 11.

The Building-Related and Fire Codes Appeals and Advisory Board (BRFCAAB) advises the department and the Building Official on adoption of the codes, and recommends amendments to each as needed. City Council voted to add six new members and reappoint twelve existing members to the board on January 13, 2022. Throughout the process, DSD will hold stakeholder meetings for each adopted code to review the significant changes and how the industry will be impacted. The committee meetings will begin in mid-February and will be held weekly. Meeting dates, times, and agendas will be posted on the DSD website.

Our goal is to complete the adoption process and present to City Council in August 2022. Once adopted, a 90-day grace period will be provided before the new codes go into effect. The adoption process was delayed due to the pandemic.

Information Bulletin 239 informs customers of the process for expired and inactive permits. The Building -Related Codes (Ch. 10) state every issued permit will expire after 180 days of no activity, including work on the site that is commenced, abandoned or suspended. Permit holders are notified by email 30 days prior to the permit expiration date.

To help facilitate your project, our department may grant an additional 180-day permit extension when a request with valid, justifiable reasoning for the project’s abandonment is provided through our online system. Trade (mechanical, electrical, plumbing) permit extensions are processed using the completion permit request. Contractors registered with the City need to complete all issued permits. 

Requesting an extension, completion permit, or payment of all past due fees are required before renewing contractor registrations, which may lead to additional inspections to close the permit. Registered contractors receive a 30-day notification email from the online system prior to their registration expiration date.



Permits may be issued to the property owner or the registered/licensed contractor depending on the scope of work, and trade permits are generally issued to the master of record or the approved delegates. 

Keep in mind the following tips:

• The original permit holder (homeowner or master on record) will need to apply for a permit extension. A homeowner can assume the responsibility of the building permit if contractor has abandoned the project excluding trade permits.
• If a new contractor is hired to complete the work, a permit extension will not be granted. Instead, the new contractor is required to obtain a new building permit or a trade completion permit as the new permit holder.   

Here is the schedule for 2022:

• Feb 10 – BuildSA
• Feb 24 – Strike Team
• Mar 10 – Plumbing
• Mar 24 – Electrical
• Apr 14 – New Residential (Spanish)
• Apr 28 – Existing Residential

DSD has scheduled several in-person training sessions. Each session runs from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. Sign up in advance by calling 210.207.1111 or by signing up during one of your visits at our counter. For more information, visit our website.

The latest Information Bulletins (IB) are posted below:

IB 132 - Program Policies, Procedures & Guidelines, Lists, Notice Forms and Report Forms for Special Inspections - posted 01/08/22

Revised. Provides a more user-friendly tool customers can use when researching policies, procedures, guidelines, lists, notice forms and report forms required for the Special Inspections program found in Section 1704 and amended Section 1704.2 of the 2018 International Building Code. All forms required by the Special Inspections program are attached to this bulletin and are available on-line. 

IB 170 - Swimming Pool Permits, posted 12/22/21

As a customer service initiative, this revised bulletin reflects the BuildSA permitting process. DSD developed this IB to describe the process and some of the minimum requirements for obtaining swimming pool permits.

IB 171 - Retaining/Landscaping Walls – Permit/Inspection Requirements, posted 01/06/22

Clarifies process and provide forms to obtain permits for retaining and landscaping walls, and defines requirements for other walls built in within the city limits. This IB was updated to reference electronic submittal through BuildSA and clarify requirements.

For a complete list of additional online resources, visit the following sites:

• Forms & Applications
• Information Bulletins**
• Code Interpretations
• Rule Interpretations
• Annual Report

Currently looking for planners, engineering technicians, plans examiners, trade inspectors and code enforcement officers. To learn more about our job openings or to apply online, visit the city's career site.

The complete Performance Measures report is available online.