photo by: Chad Lawhorn/Journal-World

A single-family home under construction along Cedar Grove Way in west Lawrence is shown on July 7, 2025.

The City of Lawrence will add two new programs that aim to streamline the inspection process for contractors and residents in the city.

The city announced in a press release Wednesday it will integrate two new tools to improve the city’s inspection process: Video Recorded Inspections and SelecTXT.

The Video Recorded Inspections are an expansion of a city program that started during the start of the COVID-19 Pandemic which allowed for remote video inspections. The new inspection option now permits the inspection to be recorded by the contractor and submitted for review and approval — making it possible for the contractor to record, submit and move on to another project while waiting for the review.

Those recorded inspections will need to be scheduled by the contractor through the City’s Enterprise Permitting & Licensing software. More information is available on the city’s website.

The other new program, SelecTXT, would allow contractors to schedule inspections and check inspection results via text. The city says it would replace a phone call scheduling system, and contractors would not need to login to the city’s permitting and licensing software. Instead they can schedule, reschedule or cancel inspections with a simple text message. The city said that program should be live starting in October.

Brian Jimenez, Assistant Director of Planning & Development Services, said in a statement the city has been evaluating ways to improve the inspection process for developers and residents, and these options “improve flexibility and make it easier for (anyone) to work with our team more efficiently.”