City Building Dept. to change inspection procedures March 23

March 19, 2020

Effective March 23, 2020, the City of Fernandina Beach Building Department will be changing its inspection standard operating procedures as follows:

•COVID-19/Coronavirus poses a serious risk to the health and well-being of City staff and our customers. To ensure a safe working environment, inspections will be conducted in a manner to reduce contact with the general public and adhering to CDC and local guidelines.

•Inspections will continue as normal for all unoccupied buildings and new construction.

•For any occupied building, the work area cannot have more than 8 people, and a safe distance of 6 feet must be able to be maintained from occupants. Evaluation of “if it can be done safely” is at the discretion of the inspector.

•The City of Fernandina Beach currently offers virtual inspections for certain trades, such as HVAC change outs and roofing inspections. It may be possible to do other inspections with this method as well. If a contractor desires to have this type of inspection, they can be schedule at specific times and possibly even be scheduled same day depending on availability. For more information, please contact the Building Department at 904-310-3135.

•Our goal is to make the permitting process as safe as possible for all parties involved and we look forward to working with our customers as we implement this new process.

Please contact the Building Department Permit Techs or the Building Official for additional information at 904-310-3135.