Occupancy Permit Guide
Now available on Keystone to view and download is an Occupancy Permit guide, developed through collaboration between commercial division representatives and key City of Winnipeg occupancy permit officials. This document will help members better understand the intricacies of occupancy permits as well as methods to prevent delays in obtaining an occupancy permit certificate. To access the PDF, please log in to Keystone where it is located under Resources: Policies and Guidelines.
On February 22, the City of Winnipeg Occupancy Permit Coordinator, Deyan Momtchilov, spoke on this topic at the 2018 Commercial Division Breakfast, held at the RBC Convention Centre. He explained that the occupancy permit is a way for the City to ensure owners/tenants comply with the zoning and Manitoba building codes regarding how occupied space is used.
A major take-away from Momtchilov’s presentation was that delay and turnaround time for occupancy permits should not be an issue if the approval process is closely monitored by applicants. The building permit process, depending on the complexity of project, typically involves reviews from various civic departments. Further details regarding the application and approval process can be found at http://www.winnipeg.ca/ppd/permits/permits_online.stm
Delays to an occupancy permit application may occur if one possesses an interim permit and compliance issues exist while the building space is currently occupied. It was explained the City of Winnipeg can make it very expensive for an applicant if they have to continually make 30 day interim occupancy permit applications before completing the building.
Another important take-away at this breakfast is a new owner of a building who is not changing the use or altering the space can simply contact the occupancy clerk and they will update the current occupancy permit by just changing the name of the owner. It can be done in one day.
Older heritage buildings, such as those found in the Exchange District, will likely require an historic review as a result of a heritage designation. He said the City of Winnipeg is not committed to approving every proposal.
The City of Winnipeg is currently developing a “View my Status” function for occupancy permits, which would allow for the tracking of the status of required inspections. They are anticipating completion as early as second quarter 2018.
Online searching is available for occupancy permits issued since 1998, with plans to include results from as far back as 1965 when occupancy permits originally started.
Commercial division chair Trevor Clay thanked Mr. Momtchilov for his presentation and said the new occupancy permit guide on the Keystone portal is an added benefit for our members.