Like many of you, I’m currently working from home, under a shelter-in-place order due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Several of my clients have had questions regarding what to do about their building projects during the shelter-in-place, so I’ve put together a list of construction-related information for California and the Bay Area to help them – and you – know how to proceed for the immediate future.

Keep in mind that the situation continues to evolve, and I don’t know how recommendations and restrictions are likely to change in the coming weeks. Always follow the recommendations of your local health and building departments regarding any building or construction work for your home or business.

California’s Shelter-In-Place Order Impact on Construction Projects

California’s shelter-in-place order exempts 16 “essential critical infrastructure workers” from the shelter-in-place order. These include:

  • Workers such as plumbers, electricians, exterminators and other service providers who provide services that are necessary to maintaining the safety, sanitation and essential operation of residences.
  • Construction workers who support the construction, operation, inspection and maintenance of construction sites and construction projects (including housing construction).
  • Workers such as plumbers, electricians, exterminators and other service providers who provide services that are necessary to maintaining the safety, sanitation, construction material sources and essential operation of construction sites and construction projects (including those that support such projects to ensure the availability of needed facilities, transportation, energy and communications; and support to ensure the effective removal, storage and disposal of solid waste and hazardous waste.)

It’s important to note that each county that has issued a shelter-in-place order may have its own additional provisions related to construction projects.

Marin County Construction Under Shelter-in-Place

Marin County’s Department of Health & Human Services has a list of FAQs on their website that includes information on construction projects. Essential businesses exempted from the county’s shelter-in-place order include:

  • Plumbers, electricians, exterminators and other service providers who provide services that are necessary to maintaining the safety, sanitation and essential operation of residences, essential activities and essential businesses.

Other construction-related information:

  • Only painters necessary for the completion of essential infrastructure as defined in this Order may continue operating while this Order is in place.
  • Routine landscaping, gardening and other commercial outdoor services that provide general upkeep are not deemed essential and are not permitted under this Order. The County urges non-essential outdoor services to be deferred to minimize risk of transmission. However, there are some outdoor services that would be considered essential and are permitted under this Order, including fire reduction work, maintaining growth along curbs and medians in order to ensure visibility along roadways, minimum basic operations necessary to maintain the value of a business, and other tasks that are essential to the health and safety of the public.

Partially Completed Projects

  • Residential construction projects that are partly completed can continue to completion in order to ensure health and safety.
  • New construction projects are prohibited “unless they are adding to the supply of our county’s housing stock (i.e., building a second unit, building a new home, etc.) or maintaining the habitability of homes in order to avoid displacement of residents.
  • Business construction projects related to maintaining or upgrading essential business, government or health care infrastructure are also allowed to go forward.

Building Permits

Per the County of Marin website, the county is only accepting and issuing building permit applications for:

  • New housing construction
  • Necessary work to maintain essential businesses
  • Emergency repairs.

In addition, “all residential construction projects that are partly completed can continue to completion in order to ensure health and safety.”

Most city permit offices will be closed, but you may be able to apply for permits online.

New Remodeling Projects

New remodeling or renovation projects should be deferred “unless it is necessary to restore your home to a safe, sanitary and habitable space.

Sonoma County Construction Under Shelter-in-Place

Sonoma County’s shelter-in-place order is nearly identical to Marin’s regarding construction projects.

The county’s FAQ page contains some special information for those impacted by the recent wildfires:

  • Cleanup and remediation of parcels burned in a wildfire are permitted “within the Order’s exemption allowing work necessary to the operation and maintenance of essential infrastructure (e.g., construction, solid waste removal). Additionally, existing Health Orders and County Ordinance adopted for the Kinkade Fire require such work.”

Take-Aways

The bottom line appears to be that, in general, construction projects may go forward if:

  • They create new housing units
  • They maintain essential businesses or infrastructure
  • The restore homes to safe, sanitary and habitable space.

If you are unsure if your construction or remodeling project can go forward, check with your local health and building departments.

If you have a construction project during the shelter-in-place order, ensure your team adheres to social distancing requirements:

  • Maintain at least six-foot social distancing from other individuals
  • Wash hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds as frequently as possible or use hand sanitizer
  • Cover coughs or sneezes
  • Regularly clean high-touch surfaces
  • Avoid shaking hands.

I hope this information helps and that you remain safe and healthy during this difficult time.

Note: In the coming weeks, most of us will be focused on getting through the current crisis, so I will only be adding new content to this blog as new information arises pertaining to building and construction during the crisis. In the meantime, I’ll be rerunning some of the more popular posts from the past.