Here are proactive steps you can take to successfully work through the local permit process.
By Brian Millar, AICP
If you are considering establishing or expanding your winery and tasting room operations — perhaps looking to host special events, weddings and live music — you will have to navigate your local county or city government permitting process to gain the necessary approvals. Depending on the size and complexity of your project, the process can be daunting, from submitting use- and related-permit applications to working with the local community, all while ensuring that the approvals you obtain still meet your operational goals and objectives.
There are, however, several proactive steps you can take. Here are eight tips for successfully working through the local permit process.
- Define the Project. This should absolutely be first on the list. Be clear and precise about what you want to do and the background details. For example, for events to be held at a winery or tasting room, consider: how many, how big, year-round or seasonal events, days/hours of events, use of amplified or acoustic music, parking plans, preparing food onsite or using caterers, how many event staff, etc. You will probably find that the local permitting process comes down to key issues of customer vehicle traffic, hours of operation, noise generation from special events, land use compatibility with existing uses in the area and environmental concerns. Local residents typically want to preserve their area’s sense of character, avoiding weekend and holiday traffic jams and excessive noise generation. Anticipating these types of concerns when planning your project will help in the long run.
- Know Who You Are Dealing With. Get a lay of the land, including local agency staff, community and local interest groups. You may find an agency easy to work with, while other stakeholders may be more difficult and ask for a lot of information. Visit the local planning office in advance to meet the staff when you are getting ready to complete your application.
- Understand Local Development Codes and Standards. Take the time to learn the basics, particularly as they relate to wineries, tasting rooms and special events. Development standards can apply to building heights, setbacks, hours of operation, parking, landscaping and building design. Understanding these can guide your project planning. If your project involves expansion of an existing winery or tasting room, check to see if there are any previous conditions of permit approval or other possible limitations that could apply.
- Ask for a Pre-Application Meeting. Many local agencies offer a “pre-app” process, letting you file a preliminary site plan and project details for an informal review by key agency departments (such as planning, building, engineering and environmental health). The pre-app process is an excellent way to obtain preliminary feedback from staff, including identification of any key concerns or issues, and to discover whether staff is likely to support the project once it is formally filed for processing. Having staff support for your project in advance is huge; the last thing you want is to battle staff at a public hearing over a negative recommendation on your project.
- Prepare Complete Application and Project Plans. Nothing sets your timeline back like having your project application materials rejected by the local agency staff due to lack of detail.
- Prepare Necessary Technical Studies. Work with local agency staff first. This is particularly important if the local agency is indicating you will need some type of traffic and circulation study; these can be time-consuming and expensive, so it is important that you and your traffic engineer know the methodologies that go into a traffic study based on the agency’s standards and expectations.
- Invest in Community Outreach. This can go a long way, especially if your project is likely to be controversial. Find out who the local interest groups are, seek to meet with adjoining neighbors or consider holding an informational meeting and invite neighbors before you file your application with the local agency. Ideally, you can seek support from the community for your project. Even better, see if you can obtain written letters of support from neighbors and community members that you can file with your application package.
- Be Flexible. If you find yourself facing vocal and unhappy citizenry during a public hearing before your local planning board, it could be helpful to have considered in advance if there are any changes you would be willing to make to your project to gain that approval vote.
Brian Millar
Brian Millar, AICP, is president of Land Logistics. Founded in 2004, Land Logistics provides support services to the development community and public agencies in project processing, project management, due diligence studies and permitting. Mr. Millar has also served as a director in several community development agencies and in development consulting roles to the private sector.
