Relief is on the way to address delays in processing building permit applications in Sooke.
The district has hired a chief building inspector in an auxiliary capacity and hopes to hire more inspectors soon.
Christina Moog, the spokesperson for the District of Sooke, said the newly hired building official has extensive experience and offers code reviews and inspections outside regular business hours, including evenings and weekends.
“Our recruitment is ongoing and we are hopeful to be hiring some additional inspectors in relatively short order. While we were initially recruiting for full-time positions, adapting to hire auxiliary staff in this service area is proving responsive to the available talent pool,” Moog said.
The Sooke Builders Association and some residents have criticized the lack of building inspectors and the resulting bureaucratic bottleneck.
“It’s frustrating for us, too,” Coun. Al Beddows said in an interview with Black Press earlier this year. “We’re not the only municipality crying out for building inspectors.”
Under normal circumstances, three inspectors oversee the building inspection process in Sooke. However, recent unexpected absences have disrupted this workflow, exacerbating the existing backlog of pending inspections.
Two weeks ago, about 340 inspections awaited completion due to the backlog.
The number of inspections handled daily by inspectors ranges from three to 15, depending on the assessment’s complexity and location.