Introduction

A preliminary plan review before the project design stage has proven to be beneficial for both our customers and our plan examiners in the past. This preliminary plan review process will provide the following benefits: 

• It provides opportunity for design professional(s) and/or owner to get examiner’s interpretations for potential code violations in the proposed project prior to the design and development of the project.
• It provides a process for initiating code variance appeal if potential code violations can not be resolved in the preliminary plan review meeting.

Application qualifications

• Please note that this application for a preliminary plan review is for scheduling a personal meeting with a plan examiner to go over potential code violations identified in your application. At the end of meeting, you will only receive answers to your code questions and no “building permit” will be issued to start the construction work.
• The preliminary plan review meeting can be conducted either in our office or on project site if necessary. Please indicate the desirable meeting location when completing the application form.
• This preliminary plan review meeting can also be conducted through a virtual meeting process to save time and money of traveling to site or to state office.

Application form

• Apply online through DIC web portal. If you have not registered as a member in the web portal, you must complete the registration process first. Once you are registered, you can follow the screen instructions to apply for “Preliminary plan review” as application type and upload the application and worksheet (in .PDF format; see "apply in paper format" below to download the form & worksheet) in the portal attachment tab.
• Apply in paper format: To apply by mail you may contact our office for the DIC 3016PL form by submitting request in the Contact Us page.

Application procedures

• The preliminary plan review meeting is scheduled by appointment only. To schedule for an appointment, complete and submit the application form and work sheet. You will be contacted to schedule an appointment once the application is processed. Please contact DIC office at (614) 644-2622 or e-mail (BDCCPlans@com.state.oh.us) for any additional questions.
• The State plan examiner(s) will meet with the project designer(s) and/or property owner(s) either in person or via a virtual meeting to review and discuss all identified potential code violation issues.
• If unusual conditions exist and after discussion the potential code violations can not be resolved, an adjudication order can be issued by the plan examiner. This will facilitate an early opportunity to appear before the Ohio Board of Building Appeals for relief. Otherwise, the designer should write up a meeting note summarizing all the discussion and conclusions for all issues discussed and mail it or e-mail it to our office or upload it to our web portal for our file.
• When the project design is completed and submitted for a building permit, please provide the “preliminary plan review CPA number” on the block #4 of the application form for building permit. Then, this project will be assigned to the plan examiner in the preliminary plan review meeting to continue the plan review for consistency purpose.

Application fees

Preliminary plan review fees will be based ONLY on the actual time spent by the plan examiner for the meeting @ $130.00 per hour. For on-site preliminary plan review meeting, the travel time will not be charged. An invoice will be mailed to the customers or posted online after the meeting.