Permitting & Entitlements
Move a project from application to issued permit
Plan review is a conversation with a reviewer who has a checklist and a queue. Projects move when someone reads what's actually being asked and answers it completely.
Why permits stall
Almost never because the project is unapprovable. Usually because a correction letter got answered partially, or the civil set and the architectural set say different things, or nobody followed up when a review cycle went past its posted timeline, or the application was filed under the wrong permit type in the first place.
Each of those adds a full review cycle. Cycles are measured in weeks, and they compound — a project that could have been issued in four months takes eleven.
What CLD does on a permitting engagement
Determines the correct permit pathway and sequence before anything is filed, including whether land use approval has to precede building permit application. Prepares and assembles submittal packages against the jurisdiction's own checklist. Runs the pre-application meeting and captures what staff actually said. Tracks review cycles and follows up when they slip.
When correction letters come back, CLD writes the response — a comment-by-comment reply that says where in the resubmittal each item is addressed, and coordinates the design team so their revisions are consistent with each other before anything is resubmitted.
Unsticking a project already in review
This is a common engagement. CLD pulls the full permit record, reads every correction letter and reviewer comment in sequence, and identifies what's actually blocking issuance versus what's noise. Sometimes the answer is a design change. Sometimes it's a code interpretation request. Sometimes it's a conversation with a supervisor about a reviewer applying a standard that doesn't apply.
What you get
- Permit pathway and sequencing strategy
- Complete submittal packages built to the jurisdiction's checklist
- Pre-application meeting preparation and written debrief
- Comment-by-comment correction responses
- Review-cycle tracking and agency follow-up
- Coordination of design team revisions before resubmittal
Bring CLD in when
- A permit has been in review longer than the jurisdiction's posted timeline
- You're on your second or third correction cycle on the same comments
- You don't know which permits the project needs or in what order
- The design team is coordinating with the county and nobody owns the schedule
Common questions
Do you file permits under your name or mine?
Applications are filed in the owner's or the appropriate applicant's name. CLD is listed as the contact and authorized agent, which is what lets Carol communicate directly with reviewers on your behalf.
Can you help if the permit is already stuck?
Yes — that's one of the most common reasons clients call. The first step is reading the full permit record to find out what's actually blocking issuance.
How long does plan review usually take in Washington?
It varies by jurisdiction, permit type, and current volume, and jurisdictions publish their own target timelines. What matters more than the posted number is how many cycles you go through. A clean first submittal is the single biggest lever on total permit duration.
Where this service is available
In person across Snohomish County · King County · Skagit County · Island County. Code research and submittal preparation for this scope is also available remotely, nationwide.
Related
Services that usually go with this one
Feasibility & Due Diligence
The cheapest problem is the one you find before closing. A feasibility review tells you what the parcel supports, what it will cost to get there, and whether to walk away.
Read more →ADU Planning & Permitting
Washington has spent several years loosening ADU rules, and jurisdictions have implemented that unevenly. What your lot allows depends heavily on who permits it.
Read more →Design & Consultant Coordination
Architecture, civil, geotech, survey and landscape each produce a correct set. Plan review is where you find out they don't agree with each other.
Read more →Tell Carol about the project
The first conversation is a straight read on whether the project is workable and what it would take to move it. No charge for that call.