Using the City E-Development Portal (IDTplans)

The City of Fayetteville handles permit applications online through a system called the e-Development Portal (sometimes called IDTplans). This page walks you through it, with a video for every step.

Words to know first

The portal uses a few terms that may be new:

When you see…	It means…
Submittal	Your permit application
Forum (sometimes called Quum)	Chat-style messages between you and the city
Issues	Reasons the city declined or paused your project
Inspections	Scheduled building checks and their pass/fail history
Project taskbar	The menu of tabs running along the side of your project page

Knowing these makes the rest of this page much easier to read.

1. Submit a New Project

Once you’re signed into your account:

Open Projects → Submit a Project and click Submit a New Project.
Application Category:
- Building Inspections review — for all building and trade permits.
- Planning and Zoning review — for fences, signs, zoning verification letters, and similar permits.
Application Type:
- Residential Plan Review — residential building permits.
- Commercial Plan Review — commercial building permits.
- Trade permits (electrical, mechanical, plumbing) are also under this list.
Project Name — enter the project address plus a short scope description (for example, “1234 Hay St — HVAC change-out, residential”).
Click Save and Continue and follow each prompt to the end.
At the end you’ll be prompted to upload your hard-copy application — the city still requires these.
Click Review and Submit.

2. Find an Existing Project (Search)

You can search whether or not you’re signed in.

Signed in: click the magnifying-glass icon (Project Search) and enter your project address.
As a guest: click Public Projects → Log in as a guest, then use the same search.

If you reach a page saying insufficient permissions, click Request permission to view this project. The request goes to the project admin; once granted, you’ll have basic user access to the project’s documents and history.

From the project dashboard you can view:

Application submittal and approved plans
Issues and general comments
Permits and inspections
The Forum / submittal data (your original online application)
Emails — the city’s preferred channel for project communication, since everything is timestamped and recorded for the project history.

3. Project Taskbar Overview

The project taskbar runs along the side of every project page. Click the double arrows to expand it. Sections include:

Tab	What it shows
Documents	The project home page — all uploads and permits.
Issues	If your project is declined, the reason appears here.
Inspection Results	Pass/fail history and reports.
Forum (chat)	Send and receive short messages with the city.
Submittal Data	Your original online application.
Emails	Full correspondence with permit techs and plan examiners. You can send messages from inside your own project.

4. Invite Contacts to Your Project

To give a contractor, designer, or co-applicant access to one of your projects:

Open the project so you land on the Project Dashboard.
Click Project Actions → Invite Contacts.
In the To field, enter the contact’s email address.
Click Send.

5. Document Uploads (Pre- and Post-Approval)

The same upload steps apply whether you’re submitting your initial application or you’ve been invited to an existing project.

From your project page, find the Document Upload window. Post-approval applicants: open the Post-Approval Upload link from your email.
Click Upload Files to open the upload window.
Either drag and drop your file or click Add Files and browse.
Name your file by what it is — Building Application, Electrical Application, Mechanical Application, Plumbing Application, etc. The plans examiner needs to know at a glance.
Click Open to attach, then Start Upload.
Click Save and Continue.

6. Draw a Simple Site Plan

If your project is a fence, addition, shed, or pool, the city’s GIS Data Viewer lets you produce a site plan good enough for staff review — no surveyor required for simple residential work. The full 12-minute walkthrough below is essential viewing the first time.

What the city actually needs to see

Per the video, three things:

The location of the project on your property (or attached to your house).
The dimensions of the project itself.
The distances from the project to the nearest property lines.

That’s enough for staff to determine the dimensional requirements of your project.

High-level steps

Open the city’s GIS data viewer from the link on the city’s permits page.
Find your address — type into the Find address or place box (top-left). Confirm your property sits inside the pink city-limits area. Other colors mean the property is in the county, Hope Mills, or Spring Lake.
Open the Layers list (paper-stack icon, top-right). Turn off clutter layers: Code Enforcement, Buildings, Watershed, City Limits, Permit Holds, BOA & Zoning, Subdivision, Watershed Cases, Complaints. Turn on the latest aerial imagery layer (e.g., 2023 Imagery).
Set the scale to roughly 1 inch = 20 feet (40 feet for larger lots). Center your property.
Draw and measure the addition:
- Use the measuring stick (units in feet) to mark distances.
- Use the palette tool to draw straight lines — pick a color that contrasts the imagery (green works well over blue).
- Use the A (text) tool to label Room Addition, 20 ft, 32 ft, etc.
Show distance from property lines:
- Draw an arrow (a contrasting color like orange) from each corner of the addition to the nearest property line.
- Use the measuring tool to read each distance, then label the arrow with the result (e.g., 70.7 ft, 90.4 ft).
Clear measurement lines before printing — they’re temporary and shouldn’t appear on the final plan.
Print to PDF:
- Click the printer icon, expand Advanced, and change Scalebar unit to Feet.
- Click Print. When the PDF is ready, click Download, save to your desktop, then upload it to your IDTplans project.

Common questions

What if I see “insufficient permissions”? The project belongs to someone else. Click Request permission to view this project — the project admin gets your request and can grant you access.

Do I have to upload the paper application? Yes. Even though everything else is online, the city still requires the hard-copy application as a PDF inside the portal.

My file won’t upload. What now? Try renaming it without spaces or special characters — for example, building-application.pdf instead of Building Application — final v2.pdf. Most upload failures come down to filenames that are too long or contain unusual symbols.

The portal screen looks different from the video. Is the video out of date? The portal is updated from time to time. The overall flow stays the same, but a button may have moved or been renamed. If you’re truly stuck, call 910-433-1707 — the staff sees the same screens you do.

I forgot my password. Use the Forgot Password link on the sign-in page. If the reset email doesn’t arrive, check your spam folder.

Does it cost anything to use the portal? No. The portal itself is free. You only pay the actual permit fees, which vary by permit type.

All training videos at a glance

#	Video	Length	Best for
1	New Project Submittal	1:17	Starting a fresh permit application
2	Project Search Function	1:55	Finding an existing project (signed-in or guest)
3	Project Taskbar Overview	1:15	Navigating an open project
4	Invite Contacts to Project	0:35	Adding a contractor or co-applicant
5	Document Uploads — Pre & Post Approval	1:54	Uploading the hard-copy app and approved documents
6	Site Plan Tutorial	12:35	Drawing a basic site plan in the GIS viewer

All videos are published on the City of Fayetteville, NC Government YouTube channel.

Need help?

Need	Contact
Permit application questions	Development Services — 910-433-1707
Sign permits	910-433-1705
Historic District (COA)	Historic Resources — 910-433-1457
Portal access issues	Use the Emails tab inside your project — that’s the city’s preferred channel and creates a permanent record