Interactive project guides help customers get permits

The new project guide asks customers simple questions about their project, then, based on their answers, provides a clear step-by-step guide for submitting the right forms to get the right permits.  

This tool, the first of its kind on Portland.gov, is part of a larger collaborative effort between Digital Services and PP&D to make it easy for community members to get a building permit in Portland. Anyone who’s applied for a permit knows that the process can sometimes get confusing. There’s a lot of important information to understand about the project site, the project design, PP&D’s permitting process, and how to carry out the work.  

The new project guide helps customers get this information by asking questions about their project, and then using sophisticated logic behind the scenes, presents different web elements and information based on the customer’s answers. Teams at the City developed this guide in harmony with a new information experience and site design that are more focused on the specific projects customers undertake.  

View full size image of An example of the project details that the project guide presents to customers.

In line with this user-focused and project-specific approach, the project guide allows customers to get site-specific details by looking up their address on PortlandMaps. When customers enter an address, they can get important public information automatically added to their project details.

Published on Portland.gov as of mid-August, 2025, the new project guide holds promise as a flexible, scalable tool that can meet the complex needs of many different project types.

Some features of the new project guide include:  

• Custom project guide: Customers enter key design details about their project and instantly get a tailored list of steps, including links to required forms, resources, and helpful explanations.  
• Process visualization: The guide breaks down the larger permitting process into steps, so customers know exactly where they are and what’s ahead.  
• Address verification: Customers enter the site address of their project, and important details about things like zoning and slope are automatically entered into the custom guide.  
• Integrated scheduling prompts: Guides can suggest the right kind of appointment customers should make with City staff, so they can get answers before starting their application.  
• Embedded resources: All necessary forms, waivers, and plan requirements are linked directly in the guide, so customers don’t have to search multiple pages.  
• Save by email: Customers can email the project guide to themselves, so their custom guide is always ready.

This update is a big step toward Portland.gov’s vision of making City services easy to find, understand, and use. It’s also a win that represents the hard, collaborative work between permitting experts, designers, web developers, writers, strategists, and project staff.

Digital Services and PP&D will continue to partner throughout 2025 to make other permits more accessible and user-friendly. Next up are project guides for residential bathrooms, commercial tenant improvements, food carts, and accessory dwelling units.

Curious to try it out? Or maybe it’s time you finally built that deck? Check out the project guide to get started.

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Do you have feedback for us? Interested in helping us test our products and services? Reach out to us at digital.services@portlandoregon….