How a small project goes

1. You call or write.

   The address, what you want to build or fix, and whatever you already have: sketches, photos, a contractor's bid, a letter from the county.

2. I tell you what the permit desk will want.

   Sometimes that is a stamped drawing from me. Sometimes it is a surveyor, an architect, or nothing at all. I will say which, and what my part would cost. The first conversation is free.

3. Site visit.

   I measure what is there, with a tape and a level, and with the drone when a roof or an elevation is involved. For a porch, that is about an hour.

4. Drawings and calculations.

   Plans, sections, elevations, and details the reviewer can check, and the structural calculations behind them, stamped. You see a draft before anything is submitted.

5. Submittal and reviewer comments.

   Most counties come back with questions. One round of answers is part of the fee. If the county asks for more after that, it is billed as additional work, and you will know before it starts.

6. Construction.

   Your contractor can call me. If the framer finds something the drawing did not anticipate, we solve it on the phone or on site, and the record stays clean.

What it costs

Most small residential jobs are a fixed fee, quoted after step two, so you know the number before any drawing starts. Inspection and construction support are hourly. There is no charge for the first conversation, and if the honest answer is that you do not need an engineer, that is the answer you get.

Typical small projects

• Covered porches and additions
• Detached accessory dwelling units: site plan, grading, and onsite stormwater
• Garage and foundation repairs
• Retaining walls and carports
• Side sewer conversions and utility connections
• Site plans and grading for a new building on a lot
• ADA upgrades for a small commercial building
• Stormwater for a new parking area or an office addition

Where

Site visits across the Portland metro area and the Willamette Valley from the office in Aloha, Oregon. Elsewhere in Oregon and Washington by arrangement. Past small projects have been in Portland, Aloha, Camas, Yamhill County, University Place, and Tacoma.