CON Process - Final - bLUE VERSION - Flipbook - Page 5
requires a ten percent design contingency (5% for new construction and 10% for
renovation) and a cost escalation factor.
Our firm bases only the cost escalation factor, contingencies, and the 10% design fee on
the construction cost. Since the above factors can equal 30% to 40% of the actual
construction cost, it is vital not to inflate it.
CERTIFICATION LETTER: The architect’s letter certifies that the project will be built to
code. The client needs to sign and notarize the letter.
For projects that are medium or smaller in scale, we usually submit 100% CD for the DD
submission. This is because some items requested on the DD submission are typically
not included in the typical DD set. For a larger project, this could mean more work for
DOH reviewers because 100% of CDs have more information than they need, so they
need to search for the information they need. We would prepare a separate set of
drawings for this submission, including only the required information.
The final submission of the complete construction document is for record and is not
reviewed.
CON SUBMISSIONS ‐ It hurts a firm’s
credibility when it tells clients they do
not know how long a review will take.
However, it is true. It depends on who
the reviewer assigned is and how busy
they are.
The one item a firm can control is the
submission’s quality mentioned above.
The review time will be shorter if the
reviewer has few questions. Generally,
the higher the level of review, the more
time it takes to get approval.
We tell our clients to expect the following:
LIMITED REVIEW takes 3 months
ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW takes 6 months
FULL REVIEW takes 6 ‐ 9 months
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