A PSE Designs engineer plans for permitting from day one.
Every fall, project owners start penciling in next year's capital projects, and permitting often shows up as a single line item: submit for permit. For many budgets, that's where the planning stops, and it's the first place a schedule starts to slip. A permit is an approval to build, not a schedule, a cost estimate, or a project plan.
At PSE Designs, we plan for permitting from day one. Formal permitting can't begin until your plans are complete and submitted to the agency, but pre-permitting can start much sooner, and we use that time to keep approval timelines in step with your budget and schedule.
Our Approach to Permitting and Project Planning Includes:
Realistic Timeline Mapping: We map agency review windows, resubmittal cycles, and utility approvals against your target start date, and we plan for the fact that agency response times can vary.
Early Agency Coordination: We start pre-permitting conversations with the agency before plans are submitted, so we know what will meet their criteria and can design with those requirements in mind.
Budget Contingency Built In: We help owners carry the right schedule and cost contingency for permitting, so an extra review cycle or a longer agency response doesn't derail the rest of your plan.
When you're building your project list this quarter, permitting deserves its own line in the schedule and its own line in the budget, not just a mention. Even with careful planning, every project depends on the permitting agency and its workload, and agency response time can, and often does, affect your schedule. At PSE Designs, we put a permitting timeline on paper early, build in time for agency review, and take care of the details, from pre-permitting conversations to resubmittals, so you can plan around the process and limit the added costs that delays bring.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Start planning on day one. Formal permitting can begin only after your plans are complete and submitted to the agency, but pre-permitting can start much earlier. At PSE Designs, we start early discussions with the permitting agency to get their opinions on what will meet their criteria, and we build agency review time into your schedule, since response times vary with each agency's workload and schedule.
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Pre-permitting conversations help you catch requirements before they become delays. We align grading, stormwater, and utility layouts with what local agencies expect, so your design is practical, compliant, and buildable. Starting from the right criteria means fewer surprises when your plans go in for review.
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Give permitting its own line in both your schedule and your budget. Permitting costs go beyond fees: extra review cycles and design revisions can push your start date and add cost. Every project also depends on the agency's workload and response time, so the right contingency varies by project and agency. At PSE Designs, we plan smart and carry that contingency with you.
