Reporting Problems & Past Cases

The Department of Buildings (formerly DCRA, now DOB) regulates construction in the District. Any construction in the District of Columbia without required building permits is illegal. DOB’s website (dob. dc.gov) states that generally, the following are types of work require building permits: new construction; additions; demolition; construction of retaining walls, decks, fences, sheds, garages, and vaults; erection of signs and awnings.

Illegal construction is a public danger; it can hurt people and property. If you see illegal construction activity in the District of Columbia, please report it by submitting an Illegal Construction Inspection Request or call 311. Give the address and describe the illegal construction, and DOB will schedule an inspection to investigate.

DOB’s website (dob.dc.gov) states:
Generally, the following are types of work require building permits:

• New construction
• Additions
• Demolition
• Construction of retaining walls, decks, fences, sheds, garages, and vaults
• Erection of signs and awnings

More information on reporting illegal construction and what work requires a permit can be found here.

To easily check the status of building permits, customers are encouraged to use the Scout database. Scout is a DOB online resource that allows users to research real property, licensing, permit, regulatory, and enforcement information on specific properties and businesses across the District of Columbia.

Note: work in public space is regulated by DDOT. 

For the definition of public space, see DDOT’s Public Realm Design Manual on www.ddot.dc.gov.   Public space includes all the publicly-owned property between the property lines on a street, park, or other public property, as such property lines are shown on the records of the District, and includes any roadway, tree space, sidewalk, or parking between such property lines.

Public Parking Area: “Public Parking” means that area of public space devoted to open space, greenery, parks, or parking that lies between the property line, which may or may not coincide with the building restriction line, and the edge of the actual or planned sidewalk that is nearer to the property line, as the property line and sidewalk are shown on the records of the District. This area often includes spaces that appear to be front yards with private landscaping that create park-like settings on residential streets.

A public space permit is needed for the following:

• Dumpsters in public space
• Sidewalk construction and repair
• Flag poles, planter boxes, retaining walls and fences in public space

From the DC Department of Buildings (DOB), May 22, 2024:
The DC Department of Buildings (DOB) is excited to announce our newly-updated Illegal Construction Inspection Request Form.

Any construction in the District without required building permits is illegal. Illegal construction is a public danger; it can hurt people and property, and one of DOB’s responsibilities is to partner with the community to ensure illegal construction does not take place.

New enhancements to the complaint form include:

• User-friendly interface to report Illegal Construction activity
• Guided and simplified customer flow to validate illegal construction activity
• Neighborhood search tool to confirm location, even if you don’t know the exact address
• Automatic assignment of inspectors at the point of the form being submitted, allowing for shorter wait times for inspections to take place
• Ability to upload multiple photos and videos directly to the inspector assigned
• Alerts for locations that have preexisting Stop Work Orders

We trust this new form will be helpful to the community in helping us to stem illegal construction in the District, and thank you for your partnership.

Report Illegal Construction

The reporting platform opens with this information regarding identifying illegal construction:

If you witnessed a possible illegal construction, please use this form to file a complaint. A DOB inspector will investigate your complaint and may contact you for more information. Please provide any video(s) or photo(s) evidence, if available.

Please Note:

• • • More information on reporting illegal construction and what work requires a permit can be found here.
    • To easily check the status of building permits, customers are encouraged to use the Scout database. Scout is a DOB online resource that allows users to research real property, licensing, permit, regulatory, and enforcement information on specific properties and businesses across the District of Columbia.

Electic Vehicle Charging Cord Guidance for crossing the public right-of-way in the District of Columbia

The following zoning regulations protect solar installations from development that would interfere with their operation.
11 DCMR Subtitle E, Chapter 2

• 206.3
  Any new building, or alteration or addition to an existing building, including a rooftop structure or penthouse (the proposed construction) at the time of application, shall not significantly interfere with the operation of a solar energy system on an abutting property, unless agreed to by the owner of the solar energy system, subject to the following:  
  • (a) “Time of application” shall mean the earlier of either:
    • (1) The Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs officially accepts as complete the application for the building permit for the proposed construction; or
    • (2) the Office of Zoning officially accepts as complete an application for zoning relief for the proposed construction;
  • (b) “Solar energy system” shall mean a solar energy system of at least 2kW in size that, at the time of application, is either:
    • (1) Legally permitted, installed, and operating; or
    • (2) Authorized by an issued permit; provided that the permitted solar energy system is operative within six (6) months after the issuance of the solar energy system permit not including grid interconnection delays caused solely by a utility company connecting to the solar energy system;
  • (c) “Significantly interfere” shall mean that the proposed construction increases the shading incident on the solar energy system by more than five percent (5%), as determined by a comparative solar shading study acceptable to the Zoning Administrator; and
  • (d) All applications for the proposed construction, whether for a building permit or for zoning relief, must include one of the following:
    • (1) An affidavit by the applicant stating that there is no solar energy system on an abutting property;
    • (2) A comparative solar shading study that meets the minimum standard established by the Zoning Administrator for the purpose of determining the increased annual incident solar shading by percent; or
    • (3) A written agreement executed by the owner of the impacted solar energy system accepting the interference with the solar energy system. 

• 206.4
  Relief from the requirements of Subtitle E §§ 206.1 and 206.3 may be approved by the Board of Zoning Adjustment as a special exception under Subtitle X, Chapter 9, and subject to the conditions of Subtitle E § 5207.

Listings of cases approved by the Historic Preservation Review Board (HPRB) by time frame (files download in Excel):

HPRB Approvals March 2023 – March 2024

HPRB Approvals March 2022-March 2023