Took me 5 months to get a simple grade beam variance in Leduc County

I bought a lot near Leduc back in March with plans to build a walkout, but the county flagged my grade beam height during the development permit review. What I figured would be a two week fix turned into five months of back and forth with a planner named Sandra, three revised site plans, and a geotech report I didn't even know I needed. Finally got the variance approved last Thursday, but I'm out about $3,400 in extra engineering fees. Has anyone else dealt with Leduc County on a grade beam issue, or did I just get unlucky with the timing?

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sarahhart3d ago

Sandra flagged your grade beam height, but was it actually a height problem or a setback issue? Five months and $3,400 for a grade beam variance sounds more like a paperwork mess than a real safety issue. A geotech report for a walkout grade beam on a single lot is overkill in most cases, that's a planner covering herself, not a code requirement. Three revised site plans means somebody kept changing the goalposts on you. Honestly this sounds like standard county slowness, not bad luck, and you probably would've hit the same wall in any county around Edmonton. I'd be more ticked about the geotech fee than the timeline.

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