Permit Review Times & Statistics

Application Review Times

For applications obtaining a decision in the months of November 2024 - April 2025.

The average review times below are in calendar days and are updated monthly and are based on the average review times for permits issued within the previous six months. It is a snapshot from a customer perspective from the time a complete application is submitted to the time an applicant obtains a decision.

Application review includes technical review and decision. This data includes the time staff is waiting for applicants to resubmit drawings or address deficiencies and is not a sole reflection of how much time is spent by staff reviewing applications

We define a complete application as: receiving an application with required fees paid that passes a formal completeness check, where applicable. Depending on the nature of your application, the turnaround time of your application may take less or more days than what is listed.

 

Development Permits

Residential Development Permits

Application Type

Total Avg Review Time

(Days)

Total # of Files

Bed & Breakfast

3

11

Home Occupation

1

10

New Detached Dwelling, Duplex or Accessory Dwelling Unit 

28

5

New Multi-Unit Dwelling

Insufficient Data

3

Accessory Developments or Additions

Insufficient Data

4

 

Non-Residential Development Permits

Application Type

Total Avg Review Time

(Days)

Total # of Files

New Construction (Including Mixed Use, Commercial, Industrial, and Institutional)

169

7

Accessory Development, Additions or Temporary Uses

Insufficient Data

1

Change of Use

18

14

Signage

6

18

 

Building Permits

The review times noted for building permits include the date the file was assigned for review, to the date the permit was issued. Review time includes time spent waiting for a complete application to be received. 

Residential Building Permits

Application Type

Total Avg Review Time

(Days)

Total # of Files

New Multi-Unit Residential

Insufficient Data

1

New Detached Dwelling, Duplex or Accessory Dwelling Unit 

66

10

Addition, Alteration or Conversion

38

13

Accessory Building or Deck

36

11

Furnace, Fireplace, Retaining Wall or Similar

Insufficient Data

1

 

Non-Residential Building Permits

Application Type

Total Avg Review Time

(Days)

Total # of Files

New Construction

Insufficient Data

4

Addition, Alteration or Conversion

32

14

Temporary Structure

Insufficient Data

1

Demolition

Insufficient Data

2

 

Other Services

Application Type

Total Avg Review Time

(Days)

Total # of Files

Stamp of Compliance

7

55

Certificate of Conformance

7

20

Confirmation of Zoning

Insufficient Data

3

Environmental Request

9

6

File Search Request

6

33

 

Factors That Affect the Posted Review Times

  • Number of permits that obtained a decision within a given period
  • The number of plan revisions required and applications put on hold either at the applicant’s request or due to additional permits required. 

*If the number of applications within a given period is less than five, no review time will be posted, as the number can become heavily skewed by outliers within such a small dataset.

Application review times last updated on May 8, 2025.

 

Building & Development Permit Statistics

Building and Development Permit statistics are collected for all permits that are approved on a monthly basis in the Town of Canmore.  Each monthly summary report includes the statistics for that month and the year-to-date totals compared to the same time period in the previous year.  

Contact Us

If you have further questions, please contact the Planning & Development Department using the following form.

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