Listed Professionals & The Approval Process:
1. Now awaiting presentation in the Parliament is a ‘Planning and Development of Land Bill 2000’ which is intended to reform the Town and Country Planning Laws of Trinidad and Tobago by establishing a system of planning and development approvals designed to secure predictability, simplicity, promptness and transparency in the treatment of development applications.
2. The new Act provides for building and land development plans to be placed into two (2) categories i.e., Simple and Complex. Simple plans are for single family residential buildings, general purpose buildings less than 300 square metres and land development of less than 20 lots under normal environmental conditions.
3. Except for Simple plans, any plan for building construction or land development shall be prepared and submitted to the appropriate agency by a listed professional.
4. A listed professional is a registered professional entitled to be named in a list furnished to a regulatory agency declaring the professional to be competent to provide services in specific areas of construction.
5. Governing Councils of Architects, Engineers, Surveyors and Planners would prepare a list of professionals who express the desire and are judged competent to design and prepare plans for human settlement.
6. The following categories of plan preparation and design capabilities are envisaged:-
(a) Building architecture
(b) Structural engineering
(c) Electrical installation – commercial, institutional and industrial
(d) Electrical high voltage maintenance and testing
(e) Mechanical services – commercial, institutional and industrial
(f) Building plumbing – commercial, institutional and industrial
(g) Land sub-division
(h) Cadastral survey
(i) Infrastructure works – roads and drainage
(j) Infrastructure works – water storage treatment and distribution
(k) Infrastructure works – wastewater collection and treatment
(l) Infrastructure works – landscaping
7. In preparing the list in paragraph (4), Governing Councils must prescribe the extent and quality of work experience required to demonstrate competence in the designated fields of practice and confirm by curricula vitae review, interview or other means. A minimum of eight (8) years of professional practice is suggested.
8. Governing Councils would send compiled lists to:-
(a) National Physical Planning Commission
(b) Ministry of Local Government
(c) Tobago House of Assembly
(d) Each Municipal and Regional Corporation
(e) Ministry of Works and Transport (Construction Division)
(f) Ministry of Works and Transport (Drainage Division)
(g) Water and Sewerage Authority
(h) Chief Electrical Inspector
(i) Trinidad and Tobago Fire Services
and publish in the Gazette in April of each year.
9. Under normal circumstances, lists would be added to or deleted from on a once per year basis in March and April. If a listed person is to be removed from the list because of death or default, then all agencies must be notified.
10. The National Physical Planning Commission shall establish with the Governing Councils procedures for establishment and amendment of rules and practices which listed professionals are required to follow in respect of administrative and non-technical elements of approval submissions.
11. The National Physical Planning Commission shall work with the Professional Associations, the Trinidad and Tobago Bureau of Standards and other relevant bodies to ensure the availability of codes and standards in the several disciplines. Based on these codes and standards, professionals would have a basis for the design they prepare, and technical and regulatory agencies would use the same basis for technical review of designs submitted. There should therefore be little or no room for arbitrary or discretionary decisions in respect of approvals.
12. With the use of the established codes and standards, listed professionals would prepare plans, seal, sign and submit them to the relevant agencies and pursue approval.
13. A Chief Building Officer would be appointed under the new law, and would be responsible for the technical enforcement of the code and the management of the approval process.
14. Once planning permission has been obtained, it is expected then that approval of construction plans would readily be granted within a stipulated thirty (30) day period, after which the project can proceed.
15. Where construction approvals are not provided within thirty (30) days and the Owner/Consultant wishes to proceed with construction, then a building permit can be issued by the Chief Building Officer and construction can commence. The listed professional would continue to pursue the final approval from the Local Authority and would make adjustments to plans and to construction that may be needed to allow the final completion certificate to be issued.
16. Where construction work is undertaken as in paragraph (15) and the Owner or funding institution so requires it, the listed professional will provide a certificate of undertaking and a bond in an amount not exceeding ten (10) percent of the fee payable to the listed professional, issued by an insurance company giving assurance that the listed professional would continue to use his best endeavours to obtain the required final approvals and to ensure that plans, documents and built construction comply with the established codes and standards to satisfy the regulatory agencies.
17. When the building or sub-division is found on inspection to be constructed in accordance with the approved plans, a completion certificate would be issued by the Local Authority.
18. Where after due notice, inspections cannot be provided by appropriate officers of the Local Authority, a certificate from a listed professional other than the designer, testifying to construction in accordance with the approved plans and specifications would be acceptable for the issue of a final completion certificate.
19. In anticipation of the above, the Board of Engineering is preparing a listing of individual persons with competencies in the disciplines involved in land development and building construction.
20. Engineers wishing to be listed with the National Physical Planning Commission as having the competence to prepare, submit and accept liability for plans in any of the above disciplines are asked to submit their names to the Registrar, indicate their disciplines of interest, provide some evidence of relevant competence and advise on the firm on whose behalf they are likely to stamp and sign drawings.