City of San Jose Planning, Building and Code Enforcement Department - San Jose, California

Danny

SJePlans is Trash. My last permit took a full year to process when it could’ve been handled on the spot if done in person. This change has made the entire process so much harder. The lack of communication is a huge issue. There's no way to upload additional documents if I make a mistake, and when I do upload something, it often takes two weeks before I get a response with corrections. It's frustrating that responses can be quick when you reply, but then I have to wait another two weeks for the next update. This is by far the worst change you could have made.

Veena G.

Sincere thank you for valuable assistance from Cortney Atstatt and his team for assistance with my master bathroom remodel project in San Jose from beginning to end. Their support was extremely valuable to me without which I would have struggled to complete the project.

- Lisa helped find the floor truss documents for my home. She did a fantastic job not only in finding the relevant documents but was kind enough to find the right pages from the 200 + plus page document and even mark the damaged truss, calculations page. She explained in detail where and how I can find any needed documents for my home in the future, took the time to respond to my many queries about the plans and other specific details for the home.

- Thanks to Engineer Parviz Ezzatyar for carefully reviewing plans from my engineer and pointing out errors in the spec.

- Maysoon assisted me in every stage for several months to ensure I got the permit I needed to move on with the floor truss fix and remodeling. She assisted me with use of SJE plans as needed, took/returned my calls multiple times during the permit process approval to assist me, worked with several people on the team like Alex, Carla to ensure any sure stoppers were taken care of and helped me until the permit was issued.

- I talked to Alan Koenig multiple times. He explained the various steps involved in the exterior stucco work, pointed me to all the right documents and websites to go to. He guided me in getting the subfloor fixed right, answered many questions related to king studs, different types of drain connections like no hub and clamping ring.

- Thanks to William Chase for doing an accurate assessment during the damage survey which was confirmed after the demo.

- Cindy Martinez helped find all the right certifications I would need to verify that the installation picked was certified and accepted.

- Keith Paxton gave me the right guidance when I had to change contractors.

- Ralph Northrup helped point out that water was not draining fast enough during the shower pan inspection which probably prevented me from having to spend a lot more money later.

- Michael Lueck helped me confirm compliance related to shower drain, picking the right no-hub coupling, and gave guidance on the remaining inspections. His assistance was crucial in wrapping up the project.

- All the staff at the front desk were extremely kind and helpful.

I was able to complete this project by getting work done right to the best of my knowledge because of the help I received from Cortney and his team. I apologize if I forgot to thank someone.

For the homeowners, please remember the city inspectors are on your side and by ensuring that city, manufacturer, state and federal guidelines are met, they are ensuring good quality work is done.

Moster P.

I had an extremely negative experience with William Anton, a public works construction inspector in San Jose. He displayed inappropriate and racist behavior, threatening me by boasting about his control and influence within the city. His conduct was unprofessional and alarming, and I believe this matter should be investigated by the city of San Jose to ensure accountability and fairness.

M S. G.

Hands down the worst city and building department. They are beyond difficult to deal with I have been in construction for over 20 years and delt with multiple building departments . San Jose has the worst the inspectors they are literally Racisct. And they will come to fight with you and do whatever it takes not to pass your project . I will never work in this city ever again. Beyond horrible !

toan L.

Spent 2 hours here trying to apply for a permit to install AC on a balcony of a townhome with HOA. Building clerk said I need to contact planning department to submit pictures. I called planning department on the spot and they told me I don't need to submit anything. He said I can have the building clerk call him to confirm. I went back to the building clerk and she said the system is closed, she can't help me anymore. I need to make an appointment to come back another time. Wasted a whole afternoon and got nowhere. Horrible customer service.

N C. S.

You better believe all the reviews are accurate! I’m writing this review while I sit in my truck for a inspector to show…

He’s is only about 2 hours late! Called the BD to see what is going on. “He is running late” 🤣 How’s that for City Government “efficiency”

Damien S.

I am a solar contractor that was contracted to do a small battery job. Not only did it cost me over $6k to get a permit , but i am now going to sit my 7th final inspection because they have failed me 6 of the previous times. I have now had 6 different inspectors and have received corrections that are contradicting to what the previous inspector wanted me to do. I have tried to request the same inspector and apparently this is not possible. This entire process has costed me more than what i contracted the whole job for. I've been in the solar industry for almost 20 years and this is the worst city I've ever worked in. Contractors beware!!!! These people are crooks. I'll never do business there again.

helen T.

the building of this department is like a pic of arts
the way how they deliver the work is negative - 1grad globally
i am not going to build my home and family here to work and live in this cities .

if the government works like this, it means that the leader of this city who is just like the the service of planning and building department. the culture and values come from top to the button. stay from this kind of corruption city for collecting $ so quickly, and the service and communication are so hard to reach and delivery

all the bad review from applicators, all the good reviews are from the internal workers （ try to bring the balance of bad review .) no working