The easiest and most direct way to obtain the building plans would be from the builder itself. If you`re not sure who the builder of your home is, you can contact City of Calgary Development Building & Licensing at 403-268-5311. The operators are quite helpful.
If the builder doesn`t have the plans readily available, there is another method of obtaining them:
- Call the City of Calgary at 311. Out of area callers can use 403-268-2489.
- Ask for Property Research Center in regards to obtaining building plans for a home.
- You will receive a 6 digit reference number for your request, and can take up to 4 business days to hear back from them. (Usually it`s the next business day)
- Someone from PRC will call back and confirm that you would like the drawings retrieved from their storage facility which can take 3-5 business days.
The cost for them retrieving the drawings (as of the date of this posting) is $55 (non-refundable) and is payable upfront.
Once they have retrieved the plans, they will contact you. You are then able to go down to City Hall and view them.
But since the plans are protected by copyright, if you want copies of them you must first obtain a written permission letter or letter of authorization from the builder.
I would recommend getting this written permission first so you can make copies of the plan during your first visit so you don`t have to come down to City Hall again. If you don`t have the written authorization on hand, you will have 2 weeks from the time PRC retrieved the documents from storage to get it. (They will grant you an extension if you need more time getting the approval from the builder just as long as you let them know)
If the plans are on 11 x 17, the cost is $1 per page and can be made for you right away. However, if the drawings are on a larger format, the cost is $8 per page and will take 2-3 business days for the copies to be made for you.
Building plans are available going back to the mid-1960`s for residential homes.
What if the builder is no longer in business? You must then visit an Alberta Registries office and do a corporate search to prove that the company is defunct. With that proof you can go down to City Hall in lieu of the builder`s written authorization.
Hope this helps!
