Development Review Committee


Update 3-1-2021

In light of the continued situation with COVID-19, and in the interest of being able to continue Development Review Committee services, the P&D Department is once again taking DRC applications.  Review will be electronically transmitted by P&D to all reviewing departments, ONCE A COMPLETED APPLICATION IS RECEIVED by the applicant, and we will have comments back to the applicant within one calendar week.  As always, please continue to reach out to us if we can be of service with your development-related inquiries.  Thank you for your cooperation as we work to meet your needs.


Update 5-29-2020

In light of the current situation with COVID-19 and in the interest of providing the best customer service during this time, we are suspending the Development Review Committee until further notice.  In the meantime, if you need assistance with a new development, please reach out to our department and we’ll continue to assist you with your projects.  Thank you for your consideration in this difficult time. 

The Development Review Committee (DRC) reviews plans for compliance with Development Codes & regulations prior to formal submittal.  This includes plans for prospective development whether residential, commercial or industrial construction.

The DRC is composed of a representative from each of the following reviewing agents:

  • Augusta Planning & Development Department
    • Current Planning Division (including Zoning, Historic Preservation, Flood & Tree Ordinance Compliance)
    • Building & Construction Division
  • Augusta Engineering Department
    • Engineering Services Division (design and E&S review)
    • Traffic Division
  • Augusta Utilities Department
    • Engineering & Construction Division (water and sewer)
  • Augusta Fire/EMS Department
  • Augusta Information Technology Department
    • eGIS Division (911 Addressing/Road Names & Digital Data Standards)
  • Richmond County Health Department
When appropriate, additional representatives from groups such as Economic Development may attend the pre-application meetings.

DRC Pre-Application Meetings

DRC Pre-Application meetings are a free service offered by Augusta, GA beginning in January 2016. This service allows a forum for citizens to discuss their drafted plans for prospective development (residential, commercial and industrial) with a team assembled from all development-related departments / divisions or coordinated agencies prior to a formal submittal. This avoids the inconvenience of having to visit each reviewing agent separately to obtain answers to important questions or needed guidance before the plan is engineered.

Meetings are intended for projects which have a draft, concept, or sketch plan of the site layout prepared.

Once submitted, Planning & Development will review the application to ensure it is complete and meets the requirements outlined in the DRC Pre-Application Request form. Requests that are complete and received before 5 p.m on the deadline date (see DRC Meeting Calendar) will be scheduled for a 30-minute time slot on the fourth Wednesday afternoon of the same month (generally, 1:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.). Each 30-minute time slot will cover a single development request. Incomplete requests will not be scheduled until all required information has been provided.

DRC Pre-App Resources

Consultation Requests / Due-Diligence Meetings

Fundamentally different from the DRC Pre-App meetings, a tailored consultation can be arranged to discuss prospective projects that are in the preliminary stages of fact-finding and for which no draft, concept or sketch plan currently exists. This service is ideal for new or prospective property owners to conduct focused discussions on a particular aspect of a property, or a property’s proposed development, or to discuss processes with the Planning & Development Department and applicable representatives from other development-related departments / divisions. While customers are welcome to walk in during our normal business hours (8:30 – 5:00, M-F) with questions, this is a pre-arranged time slot dedicated to the developer’s or the developer’s engineer’s specific questions aimed at development-related staff members during a pre-scheduled half-hour discussion.

If you have further questions, please contact us by:
  • calling 706-821-7173 or 
  • email the Development Services Manager:
We welcome the opportunity to assist you with your project.