New Proactive Apartment Inspections Program to Bring Safer Living Conditions to San Antonio Renters
Apartment complexes present unique challenges, affecting many tenants and families at once. Effective as of April 2, the Proactive Apartment Inspections Program aims to make apartment complex property owners more accountable in ensuring they meet minimum code standards.

HOW PROGRAM WILL WORK
The City of San Antonio will maintain a registry of apartment complexes that have been cited for code violations. Any apartment complex with five or more units within city limits could be required to be listed on the registry if they:

• Receive three designated citations within a rolling six-month period, or
• Ordered by the Building Standards Board

If the owner fails to correct violations within a reasonable time (normally 10 calendar days,) after receiving notification, they will individually constitute points towards enrollment for this program because:

• Property is not being maintained to minimum code standards, or
• They have allowed the property to develop health, safety, life, and welfare problems

Properties must enroll within ten calendar days once a notification to register is received by the property owner. Registered properties will be subject to monthly inspections of up to 5% of units while in the program and remain in the registry for a minimum of six months. Fee is $100 per unit, per year.

The program includes property owner incentives to improve overall compliance. To be removed from the registry, they must meet the following requirements:

• Have no more than two citations within a consecutive six-month period, and
• Correct all the violations

The properties will remain in probation for a period of four years, and if they fall back into the program, will stay in the registry for a full year.

COURTESY NOTIFICATIONS – PROPERTY OWNERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REGISTER
As part of the program, a property owner may provide an email address for communication and courtesy notices from the Code Enforcement Section when one of their properties received a citation tied to this program. This is an additional way of communication and will not replace any notification process in place. Visit the website to submit the needed information.

Bills worth tracking this Legislative Session
Development Services is tracking 165 development related bills, 46% more than in the last legislative session.  House Bills (HB) 1279, 4215, and 4285 seek to either limit the size of city’s extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ) or reduce the regulatory controls within them. DSD firmly opposes any bill limiting our ability to carefully plan for the future in areas surrounding city limits.

Also related to ETJs is Senate Bill (SB) 2037, proposing to prevent cities from regulating commercial and industrial uses, and residential density anywhere in the ETJ. Currently, the only place where this is enforced is in the Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Military Protection Areas (ETMJPAs) designed to protect critical military installations from encroachment and incompatible development. DSD opposes this bill.

HB 14 and HB 866 require cities to enable third party reviewers to intervene in plan and plat reviews, and building inspections should the city fail to approve them within 45 days. While DSD’s review goals are substantially less than 45 days, we share other cities concerns with how independent, third-party reviewers may alter the predictability of reviews and inspections resulting in confusion, rather than streamlining the process.

HB 2789 proposes a statewide, “one size fits all” approach for Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs). This bill would undermine the local ADU ordinance, one of the most thoroughly debated topics during the 2022 Unified Development Code amendment cycle. We are in strong opposition of this bill.

The legislative session wraps up May 29, 2023.

We’re at the home stretch for the Sign Code
On March 20, staff updated the City Council’s Planning and Community Development Committee on the proposed Ch. 28 changes recommended for approval by both the Sign Code Committee and the Building-Related and Fire Codes Appeals Board.

On April 18, the Zoning Commission heard and recommended denial of the proposed amendment to remove the ban of digital billboards along the Hill Country Gateway Corridor. This item is tentatively scheduled to be heard by City Council on June 1. The Signs and Billboard Ordinance is Ch. 28 of the municipal code and is updated every five years.

Once the Sign Code is approved, a grace period will be granted before it becomes effective.

For more information regarding the Sign Code, please visit our website. 

May is Building Safety Month! It Starts with YOU!  
The theme for the International Code Council’s 43rd annual Building Safety Month is “Building Safety Starts with You!” DSD will be participating in the month-long movement to raise awareness about building safety, and celebrate advances in constructing safe, sustainable, affordable, and resilient buildings and homes. 

This educational and interactive campaign raises awareness about the importance of building codes in ensuring safety in the spaces we live, work, play and learn. Weekly themes highlight the importance of building codes in providing a strong and resilient built environment, and the need to implement modern, regularly updated codes to create safe structures.

DSD will be hosting in-person and virtual events weekly for staff and customers highlighting building safety themes such as fire safety, disaster preparedness and energy conservation. Many events will provide the opportunity to obtain continuing education units. Be on the lookout for communications throughout the month for a full list of events. Weekly themes are: 

At a personal level… 
Week 1 – Building Safety Starts at Home (May 1-7) 
Week 2 – Building Safety Professionals and You (May 8-14)  

At a local level… 
Week 3 – Prepare Your Community (May 15-21) 
Week 4 – Advocate for Your Community (May 22-28) 

At a global level… 
Week 5 – Solving Challenges Together (May 29-31) 

For more information about Building Safety Month, visit the ICC website. 

Contractor Connect
Homebuilder and Home Improvement, Mechanical, Electrical, and Plumbing contractors are encouraged to register for the upcoming Contractor Connect classes. The schedule is listed above and posted on our website. All sessions are free, in-person, and run from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. at the Cliff Morton Development and Business Services Center, 1901 S. Alamo, 78204. Sign up in advance during one of your visits at our counter or by calling us at 210.207.1111. For more information, visit our website.

The following Information Bulletins (IB) recently posted:

• IB 116 – Preliminary Plan Review Meetings, posted 4/21/23 – This bulletin was updated to reference the on-line application through BuildSA.
• IB 582 – Draft Atlas 14 Models for LOMCs, posted 4/19/23 – This IB provides guidance for the engineering community on how to use the best available models (BAM) as it relates to the San Antonio River Authority (the River Authority), Bexar County, and Public Works Department initiative to update current flood maps through the DFIRM 2.0 efforts.
• IB 583 – Definition of a Half Story, posted 4/11/23 – This IB informs customers of the recently adopted code amendment to the half story definition in Chapter 35, Table 310-1, Note (14) and shown in Appendix A, Definition.
• IB 225 – Multiple Dwelling units on One or More Lots, posted 4/7/23 – This bulletin was revised to simply the information and to help a customer determine if a separate Site Work permit application is required for submittal in addition to the residential building permit application(s).

QUICK LINKS:

• Forms & Applications
• Information Bulletins (IBs)**
• Rule Interpretations
• Code Interpretations
• Annual Report

**Information Bulletins located in Documents Online are numbered by section. The assigned numbers are generally categorized as outlined below:

• 100s - Plan Review
• 200s - Permits and Inspections
• 300s - BuildSA
• 500s - Land Development
• 600s - Fire
• 800s - Code Enforcement

Performance Measures
To view the FY 2023 report in its entirety, visit the Development Services Department Performance Measures web page. 

Also available, the FY 2023 Permit Report.

*Numbers in the FY 2022 columns are total counts for the complete fiscal year. 

Help Spread the Word: DSD is Hiring! 
The City of San Antonio's Development Services Department is responsible for coordinating land and building development throughout the City. In partnership with other City departments, Development Services helps homeowners, business owners, and those in the commercial industry plan and execute development projects. Projects can be as simple as a kitchen renovation in a home and as complex as constructing a new building on an untouched piece of property. To join our team, visit the City's Career web page and complete your application today. 

DSD will be closed on May 29, 2023, in observance of Memorial Day.