On Tuesday afternoon, the city council of Greater Sudbury gave the green light to an $800,000 trial initiative that aims to utilize artificial intelligence for evaluating building permit applications. The main objective is to detect issues at an early stage and reduce processing durations. This AI technology will serve as an initial screening tool and will not replace city personnel.
Under this project, when individuals submit their plans via the city’s Pronto portal, the AI software will analyze the application to identify missing details and potential concerns related to Greater Sudbury’s zoning regulations and specific sections of the Ontario Building Code. Kris Longston, the city’s general manager of planning and growth, mentioned that this approach could lead to prompt feedback for applicants, eliminating the need to wait several days for an initial staff review to reveal missing or incorrect information.
The system will undergo training on the city’s zoning regulations and building permit procedures. Longston likened this process to onboarding a new employee who must grasp the system’s workings before handling complex tasks. Additionally, the technology is anticipated to prevent incomplete applications from being submitted through Pronto, setting a higher standard for incoming applications and potentially accelerating the review process.
Builders in the region have expressed cautious interest in the initiative. Morgan Roleau, CEO of the Northern Ontario Home Builders Association, highlighted the significant delays in permit approvals faced by builders, with some applications taking months for clearance even for minor issues that could have been rectified earlier. While acknowledging the benefits of AI in standardizing requirements and compliance checks, Roleau emphasized that faster screening may not address all challenges in the permitting process, including delays caused by processing issues and inconsistent requirements.
Mojgan Jadidi, an associate professor at York University leading the Regulatory Compliance Intelligence Lab, emphasized AI’s effectiveness in handling repetitive tasks in the permitting process. AI can streamline administrative work by cross-referencing documents against clear rules and generating reports for human review, allowing professionals to focus on intricate decisions. However, Jadidi stressed the importance of human expertise in cases involving complex circumstances or interpretations.
John Lane, president of the Ontario Building Officials Association, noted that AI is well-suited for verifying straightforward and repetitive requirements in building plans but cannot replace the judgment of plans examiners in cases involving intricate designs or ambiguous building code stipulations. The potential of AI lies in expediting administrative processes and improving compliance checks.
The project’s funding will be sourced from the city’s Building Permit Revenue Stabilization Reserve Fund, with potential annual AI licensing fees of $350,000 to be covered by building permit charges if the full implementation proceeds after the pilot phase. Sudbury’s pilot project aims to assess the technology’s effectiveness in enhancing the initial stages of the permitting process, with a decision on full implementation dependent on the evaluation of results.