On Monday, March 30, the City of High Point sent out notice that, in response to the coronavirus pandemic, the offices at High Point City Hall for the city’s Inspections Services Department, Permit Center and the Planning and Development Department will be physically closed to the public beginning on Wednesday, April 1, 2020.
Despite the shutdown of many businesses and services across the United States, construction has remained in progress – nationally and locally. To allow for that and other planning needs at a time when many government and private sector operations have ground to a halt, the city will continue to handle online applications and other planning requests. According to the March 30 press release, only online services will continue after the first of the month since the city’s offices will be closed to the public.
The press release explains what services can still be utilized and states that the city “will continue to monitor and adjust operations as needed.”
“Permit applications are accepted online through Accela Citizen Access,” it reads. “Construction and land development plan reviews continue as normal, and online submittals are also accepted through ACA.”
The notice stated that field inspections can be scheduled through either the Accela service or another available system called “Hello System IVR.”
The city’s planning officials are asking all clients to “respect that inspectors will be following some procedural changes on the job site to ensure public health.”
Planning staff will be working remotely during this period, but, fortunately, they’ll still be available by telephone and email just as they have been in the past. However, “meetings” with customers, of course, will be held through various methods of remote communication.
City of High Point officials stated that they plan to continue to monitor and adjust their operations as the current situation changes. More information on the city’s inspections and planning services – as well as any updates – can be found at http://www.highpointnc.gov/COVID-19 .
Also, guidance on how to submit various development applications can be found online at BuildHighPoint.com. At that site, the Accela tutorial is available under the Quick Links section.
