Automated Reviewer Calls places outbound phone calls to the city on your behalf: a status update from the assigned examiner, questions about a specific drawing or form, or clarification of a review comment. You set the agenda, the agent makes the call and identifies itself, and you get a summary, a transcript and a checklist of proposed tracking updates to approve.
How follow-up with the city gets done today
Every experienced consultant knows the uncomfortable truth about permit timelines: the portal status rarely tells you anything, and the phone still does. Getting that phone call made is its own small job.
- Find the right person. The general building line, then the zoning examiner, then the plans examiner, then the mechanical reviewer, each with an extension that changes when the file is reassigned.
- Hold, leave a message, wait for the callback window. Many departments return calls in blocks; missing the callback means another day.
- Have the file in front of you. A question about a comment on sheet A-3 needs the sheet, the comment letter and the application number to hand, and the reviewer will ask for the file number first.
- Take notes on paper. "Says structural is fine, waiting on zoning, needs updated site stats, call back in two weeks." Written on a pad, typed up later if at all.
- Update the tracker. Or forget to. The next person to call the city asks the same questions again.
Multiply that by every open application on a consultant's desk, and follow-up becomes a half day each week that produces information nobody else on the team can see.
What the current process costs
| Failure mode | Consequence |
|---|---|
| Nobody calls; the file is assumed to be "in review" | An application stalled on a missing document sits for weeks unnoticed |
| Calls made without the right context | The reviewer asks for the file number and the sheet; a second call is needed |
| What the reviewer said is not written down | Missing documents, deadlines and next steps are lost; the same call is made twice |
| Follow-up depends on one person's habit | When they are away, follow-up stops |
| Hours on hold across many files | Non-billable time that scales with the number of open applications |
The wider system makes this worse. Arash Shahi's Residential Builder column describes applicants having to "manually co-ordinate dozens of stakeholders" across municipalities and agencies, and proposes a platform that would "communicate with reviewing bodies" on the applicant's behalf. For most files today, that communication is a phone call, and the phone call is manual.
How Automated Reviewer Calls works in Permits2Go
1. Pick the kind of call
From the application's tracking tab (or from an inspection record), choose Phone Call and pick one of three call types:
- Review update: a status call to the department's assigned reviewer. When do you expect your part of the review to finish, is anything outstanding from us, are there fees or deposits due?
- Document feedback: a call about a specific drawing or form. Pick the document from the application (or upload one) and the platform reads it first, so the agent can refer to sheet numbers, dimensions and identifiers by name.
- Comment clarification: pick one or more saved review comments from the Comments tab, and each becomes a question about exactly what would resolve it.
2. Set the agenda
The call starts with a short list of questions for the type you chose, up to three, because a focused call gets answered and a long one gets deferred. Edit them, remove them, add your own; for comment calls, the platform can phrase a comment as a question for you. The agenda is what the agent will ask, in order, so you can see the whole call before it happens.
3. Choose who to call
Pick a reviewer from the application's assigned reviewers and their phone number, extension, name and department fill in; or type the details for a new contact. The contact's name is required, because the agent will ask for that person by name and speak only to them. Confirm, and the call is placed from an Ontario phone number so it reads as local to the department.
4. Watch it happen
A progress rail shows the call dialling, in progress, being processed and done, and the conversation appears on screen as it happens. The agent introduces itself as calling on behalf of the applicant's consultant, states that it is automated and that the call may be recorded, gives the file facts (address, application number, permit type, submission date) and asks for the reviewer by name, through reception or a transfer if necessary. If the named contact cannot be reached, the agent ends the call politely without asking anything, and no updates are proposed.
5. Review the result and approve the updates
When the call ends you get a short summary and the full transcript laid out as a conversation. Alongside it is a checklist of proposed updates to the application: a new status, a city reference number the reviewer quoted, a sub-status, missing documents they asked for, the next action and any deadline they mentioned. Untick anything you disagree with and apply the rest. Nothing on the application changes until you do, and a note summarising the call is added to the application's Notes.
What you stay in control of
- The agenda is yours: the agent asks what you approved, nothing more.
- The agent identifies itself as automated on every call and notes that the call may be recorded, in line with Ontario's one-party consent rules.
- Each plan includes a set number of calls per billing period, only connected calls count against it, calls are limited in length, and only one call runs at a time.
- The agent speaks only to the named contact; if they cannot be reached it ends the call and proposes nothing.
- Only valid North American numbers can be dialled; premium-rate numbers are refused.
- Every proposed change to the application is reviewed and approved by you.
- Past calls, with their summaries and transcripts, stay on the application for anyone on the team to read.
The workflow after
| Step | Before | With Automated Reviewer Calls |
|---|---|---|
| Deciding to call | When someone remembers | From the tracking tab, on any file that has gone quiet |
| Preparing | Pull the file, the sheet, the letter | The agent has the file facts and, for document calls, the document itself |
| The call | Hold music, callbacks, notes on a pad | Placed for you; transcript and summary returned |
| Recording the outcome | Typed up later, or not | Proposed updates, approved with a click, plus a note on the file |
| Team visibility | In one person's head | On the application, for everyone |
The city does not change; the reviewer still picks up a phone. What changes is that the call is made when it should be, with the right information, and that what was said becomes part of the application record rather than a memory. Paired with the application inbox for written correspondence, the file finally has a single history of every conversation with the municipality.
Frequently asked questions
Does the city know the call is automated?
Yes. The agent introduces itself as calling on behalf of your consulting firm, states that it is an automated assistant and that the call may be recorded, and asks for the reviewer by name before going through the agenda you approved.
Will a call change the status of my application by itself?
No. After the call you receive a summary, the transcript and a checklist of proposed updates such as a new status, a city reference number, missing documents or a deadline the reviewer mentioned. You untick anything you disagree with and apply the rest. Nothing changes on the application until you do.
Can the agent ask about a specific drawing or comment?
Yes. A document feedback call reads the drawing or form you select first, so the agent can refer to sheet numbers and dimensions by name. A comment clarification call turns the review comments you pick from the Comments tab into questions about exactly what would resolve each one.
This guide is general information, not legal or professional advice. Permit requirements, by-laws and fees change and vary by municipality — always confirm the current rules with your local building department before you design or build.
Industry figures cited above are from “Enough is Enough” by Arash Shahi, CEO of LandLogic, published in Residential Builder magazine.