CAPE CORAL, Fla. — In Cape Coral, it seems like no matter what street you drive down, something new is always going up.
On Monday, the permits builders need to complete these projects are no longer being given out this week due to a backlog of submissions from contractors, according to the City of Cape Coral.
This comes as more growing pains for the city of Cape Coral as we continue to see a boom in people moving to Southwest Florida.
Right now, one realtor said there are only five homes in Cape Coral for less than $300,000.
Tristan Starbird, the Director of Business Development for Trademark Roofing, says one week can make its impact felt on local businesses.
“The volume is pretty high, and so taking a week off from accepting, they are going to be double next week,” said Starbird.
It's a reality that Starbird and the City of Cape Coral hope can be handled by utilizing a task force to eliminate the backlog of building permits.
Over the weekend, Cape Coral Spokesperson Kaitlyn Pearson said the task force issued 1,083 permits and another 843 at the start of the week.
For Starbird, the week-long pause is difficult, but also a sign he says of the growth in Cape Coral.
“We understand the immense pressure that the city officials are facing so many people, we are excited about the growth of Cape Coral,” said Starbird.
On Tuesday, the question that remained for some contractors was what the process will look like when the city begins accepting permits the following Monday?
Concerned contractors reached out to me through email, asking if next week all of their permits will be processed during their one-hour appointment and if long lines are expected to form at city hall.
In an email, Pearson said, “each permit runner is assigned one hour a day with a designated CSR that is taking care of all their permitting needs. in many instances, we do not track total appointment time to ensure all permitting needs are met."
As for wait times outside city hall, Pearson said, “To eliminate any wait time or lines forming, we encourage all contractors and their representatives to utilize the electronic submittal process.”
A goal that Starbird said will hopefully put everyone back on track and ready to build.
“We have no interest in not doing somebody's roof and we know that the city has no interest in hanging on to a permit longer than it wants to,” said Starbird.
Click here for a link to the Customer Service-Permitting Division.
