Infrastructure Surety

General Information

The City accepts sureties in the form of:

• Letter of Credit;
• Performance bond;
• Certified check; or, 
• Cash

A letter of credit or performance bond should be for a minimum term of two years, plus one two-year renewal if needed.

RESIDENTIAL PROJECTS
The Surety for any Residential project must be posted prior to plat recordation.  The approved amount must reflect the total construction cost of all remaining public infrastructure required in accordance with the approved construction documents.

COMMERCIAL PROJECTS
The Surety for any Commercial project must be posted prior to building permit issuance.  The approved amount must reflect the total construction cost of all remaining public infrastructure required in accordance with the approved construction documents.

Before posting a surety, the amount to be secured is determined with an approved estimate. Please use this Infrastructure Surety Estimate Template to calculate the initial submittal.

Step 1: Submitting an Initial Infrastructure Estimate

As part of the submittal process, a reviewer will set up a Link for the initial submittal on the Permit and Development Portal as part of the ASR (Administrative Site Review) or SUB (Subdivision) case pertaining to your project.

This step will appear under the Sub-Record for the case and allow the upload of documents throughout the entire surety process.

For the Initial submittal, please upload the following items:

• Initial Estimate Calculation (signed and sealed) – Please use this template  Infrastructure Surety Estimate Template (The spreadsheet with the estimate must be an .xlsx file extension before submittal.  Please verify before saving and downloading)
• A copy of the site plan sheet showing the improvements

The initial estimate must be completed by a licensed professional.

The estimate will be reviewed by staff.  Please check your portal account and email for any communication for correction or acceptance can be monitored on your Portal account. 

After approval of the Initial Estimate, please proceed to STEP 2.

Step 2: Submitting the Surety Packet

After the Initial Estimate is approved, Please submit the following documents to our Office:

• A completed Cover Letter.
• An executed Surety Agreement.
• A copy of the approved Infrastructure Surety Estimate.
• All applicable surety documents from the financial institution.

Surety packets can be delivered:

Planning and Development Department
ATTN: Dee An
One Exchange Plaza, Suite 500, Raleigh, NC 27601

We are currently out of the office and working from home but are working to improve this process.  Due to staffing in the current situation, we ask that you send a confirmation when the package is dropped off at our office from your carrier to the Contracts and Releases email shown on the right of your screen. 

Step 3: Review & Execution of the Surety Agreement

Upon receipt of the submittal packet, the documents are routed to the City Clerk's office, City Manager's office, and City Attorney's office for review and execution. If changes to the agreement are required, the specified representative will be contacted by one of our Team members. 

Note: At any point during the life of the project, the City reserves the right to withdraw any active permits or hold Certificates of Occupancy as needed to ensure that sureties and associated agreements are adequate and in good standing.

Once the agreement is executed by the City, a copy will be sent to the contact person for their record.

Surety Reductions (Partial Release)

In accordance with Section 8.1.3.B, a partial release of funds can be requested after consultation and approval by the Inspections Coordinator for the project. Please communicate via email prior to the revised estimate submittal if the partial release can take place.  After evaluation for readiness of partial releases, the revised estimate must be sent to the
Permit and Development Portal for review.

For the reduction request, please upload the following items:

• A Cover Letter requesting the reduction.
• A copy of the new Infrastructure Surety Estimate showing the reduction.
• All applicable surety documents from the financial institution.

Surety Release

After public improvements are completed, the surety can be released.  Please upload the Release request to the Permit and Development Portal.  It is then evaluated by the Inspections Coordinator for your project.

For the release request, please upload the following items:

• A Cover Letter requesting the reduction.
• Signed Acceptance letter from the Inspections Coordinator.