[drew]

^ the City is anything but consistent on most things Permit related.

However, I think there must be more behind the scenes going on that we (the public) are not aware of in this case.

Ultimately the City holds the hammer, and sometimes personality conflicts between the City and Architects/Engineers/Developers can cause the City to, ahem, sharpen their pencils, or dig in.

Once they are dug in, well, good luck - every shade of grey is done.