by Michael Bonts
Special To Realty-Builder Connection
It suits Stan DeAngeles just fine to be the chief building official in one of the state’s fastest growing counties.
St. Johns County is projected to double over the next decade, giving it a population of over 200,000. A perfect fit for someone familiar with the state’s growth patterns.
“The amount of growth here is amazing. Builders have been very, very busy and it doesn’t look like to is going to let up anytime soon,” said DeAngelis, who is originally from Concord, N.H.
He moved to Florida’s west coast in 1982, residing in Hernando County.
“I went to work for the Brooksville in 1985 as a building inspector. I worked up to building official and worked there until 1995,” said DeAngelis.
There was a six-month period in 1993 that he spent working for then St. Johns County building official Roland Holt while Brooksville was considering abolishing the building department. That idea soon died and he returned to Hernando County.
He left Brooksville in 1995 and spent two years in Fernandina Beach before joining the St. Johns department. He was elevated to chief building official this summer.
“A lot of communities coming on line in our county, not to mention the growth in multifamily and commercial construction,” he noted.
In 1993, the department had two plans examiners and five inspectors and an office staff of five. Today, there are 19 inspectors, six plan reviews and 14 on staff.
“In 1993, 100 inspections a day was considered very busy. Now we are doing 400 a day. Looks like we are going to grow even more. Office space is a problem and we are doing a study on that right now,” said DeAngelis.
DeAngelis and the building department staff is working to make the planning and permitting process more efficient. A cover sheet would help standardize plans by showing the code requirements on a cover sheet the same for everybody.
“We are asking builders and developers for input to design a consistent cover sheet and trying to get surrounding counties to do the same thing,” he said.
The information would be codes such as the wind zone, A B or C; window requirements for pressure. All that information would be on the cover to make it easier for the contractor plan reviewer and inspector.
“This puts everybody on the same page. We are trying to make it more efficient for our department and the builders. Trying to get change info out through better communication is very important,” he said.
The department is also trying to make more progress using the Internet. They want to utilize the web for all trades permits including electrical, plumbing and mechanical so a contractor can fill that out send it electronically with fees coming out of an escrow account. It will save time and be more efficient.
The first year for the new state building code wasn’t as hectic in St. Johns County as it was in others.
“We required a lot of the new building code already,” said DeAngelis. “One of the issues is we already had tackled was termite requirement. They submit the treatment information already. Now the whole state requires that. We were ahead of curve on some of that.”
—Michael Bonts is communications director for the Northeast Florida Builders Association.