It takes a tremendous amount of work to build for yourself in San Diego. A year ago I went through all the steps of putting together a submittal package. Originally I planned to make a detached addition for rental purposes, however I decided against it. Renters are notorious for trashing houses, and in California it is almost impossible to evict a non-paying tenant with no where else to go. Approval of your permits is streamlined when you build a single story dwelling with standard construction techniques. This means you build using their brochures as guidelines. Anything else will require a licensed architect's plans. The Development Review Center is located at 1222 First Av., Downtown San Diego. Click here for a map. Their phone numbers are as follows:
General Information (619) 446-5000 Appointments (619) 446-5300
Records Information (619) 446-5200
Their web site is a http://sandiego.gov/development-services/
.
At this location they have engineers in plumbing, electrical, and civil engineering. You can make appointments with them if you have questions. The map room is also there. It is at the Development Review Center that you will get your plans approved. It is there that all the brochures are freely available. This is your new home.
The other place you will be visiting is located at 1600 Pacific Highway. Here you will get access to parcel maps that provide the address of home owners within a specified radius of your home. It is required that nearby homeowners are notified of your intent to build.
County Assessors Office, 1600 Pacific Highway, Rm. 110, San
Diego 92101-2480
Phone: 619-531-5507
It is important to note that you are required to adhere to the laws pertaining to hiring help in construction. There is no limit to what you can be sued for if someone gets hurt and they don't have workman's comp insurance. It is best to hire a bonded contractor to supply help when you need it. Let him worry about that headache.
There are three documents you need familiarity with. They are available online, at the Development Review Center, and I have provided PDF copies of mine here. Use www.google.com to find them if you don't see them at their website.
San Diego Municipal Code: Chapt 11: Land Development Procedures
Land Development Manual
Volume I, Chapter I, Section 1 Guide to Project Submittal Process
Here pay special attention to Zoning on page 1, Process Three on page 5, Determine
the Review Process on page 5. You will be required to have a Plan Review on
page 5. The Preliminary Review discussed on page 8 in not necessary. I was
required to have a Conditional Use Permit on page 10. (Note that my page numbers
are Manual page numbers, not the PDF page numbers.)
Land Development
Manual Volume I, Chapter I, Section 4 Development Permits / Approvals
Here pay special attention to Conditional Use Permit on page 2. It provides
a checklist of required information you must provide.
My package consisted of about ten sections seperated by dividers in a binder. I will devote one paragraph to each section and include PDF files of the papers in each section. All forms are available online at their website or at their office.
Development Summary. Consits of a summary of project and is required as per checklist above.
General Application, Parcel Information Checklist. You
fill out the General Application. You
are required to make an appointment with Development Services to have a Parcel
Infomation Checklist performed. It is done in the Map Room which I believe
is on the second floor.
Certificate of Compliance: Residential, Mandatory Measures Checklist: Residential. You can get the required information off of advertised product brochures at Home Depot. Water heater ad. Furnace ad.
Ownership Disclosure Statement. You are required to submit a copy of your Title to the property with the Ownership Disclosure Statement.
Photographic Survey. The checklist describes the requirements for a photographic survey. A map showing orientation of the pictures is required. Sample Photographic Survey Map.
Transit Overlay Map. The transit overlay map shows which areas are accessible by bus. Your requirement for parking spaces is reduced if you are within the Transit Overlay. Detailed maps are availble at the center. I was one half block outside the transit overlay map.
Public Notice. You are required to provide address labels
for public noticing. Essentially you get the parcel numbers of houses near
you at the assessors office and they provide you with the owner's names. You
must go to the County Assessors office as per II. Where to Get the Information
in the Public Noticing Information
Bulletin. I also provided a copy of how the assessors want Request
for Assessor Parcel Information form filled out when you request address
labels from them. The procedure is as follows:
1. You go to the County Assessors office on Pacific Highway.
2. You request help pulling assessors maps around your building site.
3. You copy the appropriate maps.
4. You draw a circle with a 300 foot radius from the building site.
5. You fill out the Request for Assessor Parcel Information as shown in my
sample.
6. You submit the form to them and pay the fee for them to print up the address
labels.
7. They will call you several days later to pick up the address labels.
8. You are required to submit the 300 foot radius map with your package. Click
here to see mine.
Water Meter Data Card. Self explanatory. Just fill it out.
Truss Diagram Trusses are the beams that hold up your roof. You are required to have an architect design your trusses. I used East County Truss, Inc., Joel Coombs, 13288 Hwy. 8 Business, El Cajon, CA, 619-390-3181. I told him how long of one I needed, and the type of roof (asphalt shingle) and he had it ready the next day. No charge.
Vicinity Map A vicinity map is required. It is free in the map room on the second floor. Just ask the receptionist for help. They are actually called 1 to 800 topographic maps.
Zoning and Parking Information. You must obey the zoning
requirements for your neighborhood. Which determines what type of addition,
if any you can put on. Closely linked to this is parking requirements for
you zoning. You must be able to justify everything with the
Municipal Code. I have provided copies of the code that were applicable
to me.
1. Use Regulations Table for Residential Zones.
2. Companion Units
3. Single Dwelling Unit Residential
Uses - Required Parking Ratios
You will also be required to submit plans of the addition. These are covered in the last section.
Other Bulletins You Will Need. All available for free
at the Development Review Center and online.
How to obtain a permit to build a residential
addition. Bulletin 140.
Building valuation schedule. Bulletin
101.
General fee schedule. Bulletin 102.
Typical Single-Story Framing
Section. Bulletin 132.
Minimum standards for construction
specifications. Bulletin 112.
What will the address of the addition be? I don't know. The city and SDGE argued back and forth to me about this. Anyway, for construction purposes it is 6891 Mewall and 6891 Mewall 1/2.
I wanted seperate meters for gas and electric for the addition. The second gas meter branches off the main pipe to my other meter. Placement of the second electric meter is a little more complicated. A dual meter box sits next to the existing service panel. First you move the existing meter to the new box, creating a box with two meters. You then have two meters in one box, with the main from each meter running to each service panel. One main to the existing service panel next to it and the other runs underground to the service panel on the addition. Click here for a diagram of the electric meter setup. SDGE also required that I run new electrical burial conduit from the street to the meter because the service changed from 100 amp to 200 amp. The minimum conduit above ground is Schedule 40 rigid non-metallic. Underground is Direct Burial Rigid PVC.
You are required to re-inforce the slab with rebar. As a guideline use 1/2 inch rebar (No. 4) in 1 foot squares in footing and 3/8 inch rebar (No. 3) in 18 inch squares under slab. Support rebar framework 1 1/2 to 2 inches above ground.
Underground lines you need to addition. You will have a water line, gas line, electrical conduit, sewer line, cable and telephone conduit. The water lines are PVC except the last underground 15 feet to your house, where they change to plastic wrapped copper so they are grounded. Remember to leave one foot of rebar exposed through the foundation near the electrical panel for grounding. The water main comes through the foundation. Gas mains open through the soil outside and come through the wall. All sewer PVC is placed under foundation. Electical conduit mains come through foundation. Telephone and cable come through foundation.
Drafting. You will be drafting your own plans and I will provide pictures of mine. You need a drafting table, T - square, 2 plastic triangles, a ruler, mechanical pencil with soft lead, white soft eraser, and templates. Click here for picture of drafting supplies. You will have to get the plastic cellulose sheets that you draw on from a blueprint supply place. You need dimensions of kitchen cabinets, showers, and doors. These are all available at home depot.
Floor Plan Shows location appliances,
describes flooring, door widths, and size of headers above windows. Scale
1/4 inch = 1 foot
Floor Plan Closeup
Vicinity Map - Elevations - Contours
Shows elevation contours, surrounding homes, and location of sewer. Sewer
line must have minimum slope of 1/4 inch per foot. May be able to get away
with less than that if you use 6 inch sewer line. Scale 1 inch = 20 feet
Vicinity Map - Elevations - Contours Closeup
Foundation Framing Crossection
Consits of three views.
Foundation Framing Crossection Right Side
Closeup A crossection through the house. Outside covered with 3/8 inch
Struc. I, Exterior I plywood or OSB sheathing. 7/8 inch stucco over wire mesh
and paper. Inside covered with 1/2 inch drywall. R-13 insulation in walls.
R-30 insulation in ceiling. (The pink insulation has R values marked on it.)
Foundation Framing Crossection Roof Closeup
A crossection of the roof. Trusses spaced 24 inches on center. Roof covered
with 15/32 inch OSB Exterior I Sheathing. Asphalt shingles on top of sheathing.
Foundation Framing Crossection Foundation
Closeup A crossection of the foundation. Top of foundation 6 inches above
grade. 3 1/2 inch slab poured over 3 inch sand base. Place rebar as explained
above.
Plot Plan Shows the property boundaries,
the street, the existing structure, and the proposed addition. Scale 1/8th
inch = 1 foot
Plot Plan Closeup
Elevation Views Show roof vents, location
of windows and doors. Use of double pane - UV resistant windows is pretty
standard. The reviewers expect the addition finished construction to match
the style of existing housing. Scale 1/4 inch = 1 foot
Elevation Views Front Closeup
Elevation Views Rear Closeup
Elevation Views Right Closeup
Elevation Views Left Closeup
Elevation map from map room This map is copied for you by personel in the map room of the Development Review Center. You need this map to get the elevations of your property.
You will need some books. You can pretty much pick up on the drafting by looking at my plans. There are also plans on the interenet, just go to google.com and do a search. Home Depot has lots of great books on plumbing, electrical, foundations, and framing. It is also good to have a basic book on the Uniform Building Code. Here are the ones I own:
Pocket Guide to Dwelling Construction Requirements for 1997
Uniform Building Code by Dan Hines
1997 Dwelling Construction Under the Uniform Building Code by ICBO
The Complete Guide to Home Wiring by Black & Decker
The Complete Guide to Home Plumbing by Black & Decker
