Permit Expediters and Planners - Meet the Staff at Permit Place Permit Place friendly staff consist of professional and knowledgable staff that can help you get your permits fast.  Here's a look at where we work and who you will deal with.  Send them a note saying you saw them on the video.

Need copies of plans on a property from the City of Los Angeles?  To obtain copies of blueprints from the City of LA Building Department you need three things up front:

The City of Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety (LADBS) is notorious for it's difficulty level in getting building permits.  Use these 5 plan check tips to get through plan check at LADBS.

Are you thinking of opening a new cafe or restaurant in Southern California?  If so, below are seven (7) departments that are keys to obtain the required administrative approvals and necessary building permits prior to construction.  

There are over 28,000 permitting jurisdictions in the United States and just about as many sets of requirements for what is needed to submit a building permit application.

If you own a café or restaurant in Los Angeles and do not serve alcohol, you may be missing out on a very profitable component of your business.  We've compiled a list of the five top questions that we suggest you ask before you get started on the Liquor License process.

In January, 2011, the City of Los Angeles adopted the City of Los Angeles Green Building Code.  This code is sometimes confused with CALGreen the State of California Green Building Code but it's a separate code adopted by the City of Los Angeles that overlays the existing adopted code for projects that meet specific guidelines.

Restaurant Permits | Featured ServiceToday in our blog we feature our Restaurant Permit service. Actually, it should be called Food Service Use permit because it also covers Grocery Stores and Convenience Stores as well.Basically, anything you do with food is called by the authorities as a food use.  That means if you are service, selling or consuming it, you guessed it.  You got a food use.  What we do for restaurant, grocery stores or convenience stores.The two most important questions for you to ask when opening a cafe or restaurant is:1) Will you serve alcohol?If you are serving alcohol, you are in luck.  Permit Place Liquor License services specializes in securing ABC licenses as well as the Conditional Use Beverage process in the City of Los Angeles.  Remember, from the Top Ten Tips, the City of Los Angeles makes you go through two (2) processes.  The Conditional Use Beverage (CUB) process in the City of LA and the State of California ABC licensing.  We are experts in both processes and can save you weeks, if not months, off of the application processing time.2) What was in the space beforeIf you are looking at leasing a space, find out from the City if the location had a food use associated with it.  That's what our Property Records Research service is all about.  We research the property's certificate of occupancy and find out if the previous occupant had a food use associated with it.  If you change your use from another use to (For example, a dentist office) to a cafe you will need to apply (in Los Angeles, at least) for a Change of Use permit.  Very simply, in commercial property, if you are going to remodel an existing facility and you are not putting the same type of business back into the space, then you are changing it's use.  For example, you take over a dentist's office and open a bakery.  You are changing the use from a medical use to a food use.  Permit Place will also submit your plans to the Health Department and the Fire Department.  We will manage your signage permits as well. Our restaurant permit service can also manage your Utilities permits as well.  This is a huge value and a massive time savers.  It's all bundled or we offer ala carte service as well.  If you are trying to get a restaurant open, please rememberHealth permitBuilding PermitOutdoor Seating PermitSign PermitFire PermitConditional Use PermitABC License PermitsWe do it all so you don't have to deal with it. You can look up all the websites for every city at Permit Place's Building Department Database where we have links to all the cities websites.  We are always available for permit expediting, liquor license permit services or entitlement services.  Call us today at 818-786-8960 to discuss your project.

If you are considering opening up a restaurant in Los Angeles, congratulations.  I'm a major foodie and love restaurant's. (I like French and Italian!) So, I'm always very stoked when I see a new one open up in town.         The problem is that if you've never done it before, (or even if you have) the permit process can be very confusing, time-consuming and all together ridiculously labyrinthal to figure out.  This LA Times article about City of Los Angeles permit problems with the process is a good example.   To open up a restaurant in Los Angeles, you need to be aware of all the different agencies, sign-off's, requirements and more so for those of you who have done this, please tweet this article or like it on facebook for me.   Top Ten Los Angeles Permit Tips For Getting Restaurants Approved.  If you are remodeling the place, get your Health approvals from the County and get your building permit from the city.  (Phew!) If you are going to serve alcohol, you need to get two (2) permits.  One from the State ABC Licensing Board and the other from the City.  A conditional use permit.  They are separate approvals from your remodeling permit and the ABC depends on the CUP. If you are dealing with grease, you'll need to make sure the owner installed a grease trap interceptor.  If not, one will have to be put in, and you'll need to make sure your lease clearly states who pays for such upgrades.   If you want outdoor seating, you need a permit from the Department of Engineering. If you don't have ADA access to your restrooms, you may need to bring the space into compliance.  This is a sign-off and not a separate permit in the City of Los Angeles Remember that all of these agencies are located in other areas of the city and you will need to plan accordingly and schedule time to drive to the locations and go through the process. The City and County of Los Angeles have experienced huge staff reductions and limited hours due to the City budget crisis.  Make sure you allow for additional processing time for your applications, allow for scheduling delays for appointments and allow for limited hours for staff.   If you are changing from a retail store to a restaurant you must apply for a change of use permit, not to be confused with a conditional use permit.  They're different, but sound the same.  The first one is easier than the second one. If you do have to get a change of use permit, then you must show that you have adequate parking available, which means you must show it on your plans. Remember that City and County employees work hard just like you do.  They care about their community and what goes into the area.  Tell them the details about your project and ask about them as well.  Build relationships with them because they may be your first customers.  So that's it.  Remember that if you get confused our friendly, trustworthy, professional Project Manager's are here to help.  We've permitted hundreds of restaurants, grocery stores, retail stores and wireless facilities in Los Angeles and the country and we can help you. Give us a call at 818-786-8960 or send us a note about your project and we'll return with answers to you usually in the same day.   As your professional consultant, specialize in getting you through the process without breaking the bank and in plain English.   We can walk your project through LA County Fire, Health and Public Works permits.  State ABC Licensing and the City of Los Angeles Conditional Use permit, parking requirements and Zoning.   You get open faster, cash flow sooner and start serving dishes of pasta to hungry fans.  Mamma Mia!

California Liquor Licenses and Zoning Permit Package - Featured Service Permit Place specializes in California Liquor Licenses and the local Zoning Permits that accompany them.

California Liquor Licenses and Zoning Permit Package - Featured Service Permit Place specializes in California Liquor Licenses and the local Zoning Permits that accompany them. What are some of the services we can help with? We help with Convenience Stores, Grocery Stores, Cafe's, Hotels and Restaurants get their Type 20, 21 and Type 41 and Type 47 ABC Liquor Licenses and the Conditional Use or Zoning Permits that accompany them. We'll help you with the State process, background check, the Lottery.  We can help you figure out your ROI for getting your permits expedited vs. regular process. We'll help you with Floor Plans, Radius Maps, Site PLans, Notification Postings. Zoning Permits Health Permit Approvals Beer and Wine only Full Liquor ABC License approvals Conditional Use Permit applications Change of Use permit if necessary Lottery participation Open Licenses Need more information contact our Awesome Business Development staff Request Liquor License and Permit Package  

Women's History Month March is Women's History Month.  In honor of that month, we found several online sources that tell us more about Women's History month.  About.com has a great resource called The History of Women's History month about how March became Women's history month.  They also debunk myths in the Myth's Of Women's History. Additionally, the National Women's History Project 2011 theme is Our History is Our Strength.  They link to even more additional Women's History Links and resources all over the country.  Permit Place is a WBENC certified company and we can help you meet your supplier diversity goals.  We honor the accomplishments of the Women that came before us.

Southern California Building Permits at an historic low. On February 16, 2011, Jeff Meyers of Meyers Builders Advisors spoke at the Allen/Matkins Real Estate Development Law Update event providing attendees with some insight into the current state of the real estate market and his opinion on the health of the market moving forward. The update was primarily focused on the Southern California housing market, as well as, recent land transactions that may shape the future of housing in the region over the coming few years. Southern California permit activity is at a historic low.  As a result, Southern California will remain a popular investment location given the limited supply conditions that exist with land being so difficult to entitle.   While other bubble states, FL, AZ, and NV were oversupplied and overpriced, CA was just overpriced. Any spike in employment has the potential to create high levels of demand that cannot be met, thus driving home prices upward. Employment/Permit (E/P) ratio will likely stabilize over the coming years.  Last year, San Diego and Orange County posted modest job gains.  Economists are forecasting further job recovery this year throughout the region.  When job growth outpaces permit issuances, with the EP ratio reaching 2 jobs per permit or more, we typically have a period of significant price appreciation. Interesting points.  I'm eager to here more from Jeff.  We certainly have seen an uptick in activity at Permit Place.  You can check out what's going on through our Permit Place Construction Monitor report.  We collect and compile all the permits in the regional area.  

Los Angeles, CA – August  18, 2010 – Permit Place, a nationwide permit expediter and planning consultant firm, received national certification as a Women’s Business Enterprise by the WBEC-West, a regional certifying partner of the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC). WBENC’s national standard of certification implemented by the (regional partner organization)is a meticulous process including an in-depth review of the business and site inspection. Thecertification process is designed to confirm the business is at least 51% owned, operated andcontrolled by a woman or women. By including women-owned businesses among their vendors, corporations, and governmentagencies demonstrate their commitment to fostering diversity and the continued developmentof their supplier/vendor diversity programs. To learn more about how Permit Place can help your business get permits easily, please visit http://www.permitplace.com. About Permit PlacePermit Place is a business to business consulting company providing permit expediting, planning and project management services that helps facilitate the difficult process of securing land use entitlements, planning and construction permits for retail stores and restaurants - nationwide.     Permit Place gets permits and entitlements faster, saving our clients time and money, in the difficult and cumbersome process of securing permits. About WBENCThe Women’s Business Enterprise National Council is the nation’s largest third party certifierof businesses owned and operated by women in the United States. WBENC is a resource for themore than 700 US companies and government agencies that rely on WBENC’s certification as anintegral part of their supplier diversity programs.