Navigating Change: Bay Area Commercial Permitting Trends

Devan Mairose Calhoun
May 16
2 min read

In the Bay Area, a significant shift is transforming how cities manage permitting: the adoption of outside plan checkers.

To enhance efficiency and consistency in plan reviews, many municipalities are now outsourcing this function to third-party professionals. This approach streamlines the permitting process, reduces delays, and offers more predictable timelines for projects.

Industry News

What it Means for Commercial Construction

Bay Area Cities Turn to Outside Plan Checkers

A growing number of Bay Area cities now utilize third-party plan review — especially for large or technical projects. Outside plan checkers are contracted by municipalities or approved by jurisdictions to provide plan review services.

For tenants, owners and developers, this shift means projects can move more quickly if their plans are well-coordinated, code-compliant, and review-ready.

MAI’s Permitting Strategy:

Design-Build Meets City Coordination

Design-Build Partnerships are Key to Efficient Permitting

Our design-build model brings architects, engineers, and construction professionals together from the start, creating clean, code-conscious plans that are built for smoother approvals.

Our unified approach to design-build includes:

Close partnerships with architects and engineers allow us to tailor our plans to the specific expectations of third-party plan checkers
Tight alignment with architectural firms means fewer redlines and the ability to respond to comments quickly
Early involvement in the project means MAI can provide valuable input and guidance before submissions are made to minimize back-and-forth

Built for Collaboration — Partnering with Cities and Plan Checkers

When jurisdictions assign reviews to outside plan checkers, MAI’s process ensures we’re fully prepared to collaborate with them as partners.

Our trusted relationships allow us to:

Understand city-specific preferences and communicate proactively with city staff to clarify requirements and address issues early
Coordinate across multiple departments (like fire, planning, and health) to avoid misalignment
Advocate for our clients’ timelines with transparency and compassion

By leveraging our expertise, we’re able to get the job done and keep the permitting process on track.

A Word from Our Team

“We pride ourselves in our relationships with city and third-party planners allowing us to de-risk the project and deliver projects on schedule”

— Brannon Wynn, MAI Project Executive

Local Permitting Timeline Estimates

When permitting isn’t properly planned for, it often stalls your project's start date—which causes a domino effect:

Construction crews sit idle or get rescheduled
Lease or tenant improvement deadlines are missed
Materials and equipment deliveries are delayed or need storage
Budgets balloon due to overtime, rush fees, and extended overhead

At MAI, our project team has extensive experience with permitting and we’ve put together a map of estimated permitting timelines to help you accurately estimate project timelines.