Start with association files, then ask the County.
Check the association’s records and professional advisers before requesting missing construction drawings from Palm Beach County Planning, Zoning & Building (PZB). Search the Clerk’s recorded condominium documents separately for declarations and exhibits.
Florida’s condominium official-records provisions include applicable plans, permits, warranties, and other developer-provided items. That requirement does not establish that a complete original set is available for every older building. [1]
Focus: Century Village West Palm Beach. Reviewed October 24, 2026. Confirm the permitting jurisdiction for the actual property; a West Palm Beach mailing address alone does not establish City jurisdiction. Other Century Village communities have different local agencies.
What kind of plans do you need?
| Record | Typical purpose | Important limit |
|---|---|---|
| Construction drawings | Architectural, structural, foundation, roof, plumbing, electrical, and mechanical design information. | An approved design does not prove every detail was built that way or remains unchanged. |
| Later permit drawings | Document permitted repairs, replacements, and alterations. | May cover only a roof, a structural repair, a unit, or another limited scope. |
| Recorded condominium exhibits | Surveys, plot plans, unit layouts, and other exhibits recorded with the declaration. | Usually not a substitute for detailed construction drawings. |
| Property-appraiser sketch | Helps identify a building’s footprint or appraisal characteristics. | Not a construction or engineering plan. |
| Record drawings / “as-builts” | May document completed work or actual conditions. | Check who prepared them, what was verified, and the date and scope. |
Recommended first question: “What information does our engineer, architect, or contractor actually need?” A roof project and a recurring plumbing problem may require different records.
A practical search process
- Assign one coordinator. Have a director or property manager track requests, costs, responses, and missing items. Confirm authority for any paid research or professional work.
- Search the association’s own records. Ask current and former managers, previous directors, and engineers or architects who worked on the property. Check large-format paper sheets, scans, old storage files, and prior project folders. Seek return of association records through an orderly handover.
- Build an identification sheet. Include the full legal condominium/association name, building letter, addresses, unit-number range, approximate construction year, relevant property control numbers, and any known permit or recorded book/page references.
- Ask PZB for building records. Explain that the request concerns the whole building. Ask for available original construction drawings, revisions, and relevant later permit records, including any older archive search needed. The County’s Building FAQ directs records searches to its Records Department. [2]
- Search the Clerk’s Official Records. Locate the declaration and recorded exhibits by legal name or recording references. The Clerk provides online access to recorded documents, including condominium declarations and related documents. [4]
- Have a qualified professional assess what you found. Identify missing sheets, superseded versions, uncertain details, and information requiring field verification before design or construction.
For a building such as Northampton A
Request records for the entire condominium building, include its unit range and legal name, and explain that individual unit parcel numbers refer to units within that building. Ask staff how the original permit was indexed if a search under a single unit produces little information.
Palm Beach County: the starting contacts
PZB Records — Plans
Phone: 561-233-5160
Email: PZBRecords@pbc.gov
The County’s service reference guide identifies this contact for plans. Ask about record availability, search identifiers, electronic copies, and any fees. [3]
PZB public-records request page →Clerk’s Official Records
Use the recorded declaration and exhibits to help establish the condominium’s recorded layout and document history.
Official Records information →
The Clerk’s recorded-document archive and PZB’s permit/plan records are separate sources.
Contact details and online procedures can change. Confirm current arrangements with the agency. This guide does not promise that original drawings survive or that a complete search is available online.
A sample building-records request
Adapt the details and scope. For a focused project, identify the relevant discipline or work rather than automatically requesting every historical file.
Subject: Building plans and permit records — [legal condominium name / building]
Please search for available original construction drawings and approved revisions for [association/building], located at [addresses and unit range], constructed approximately [year]. Relevant property control numbers are [numbers]; known permit or recording references are [references, if available].
This request concerns the entire building, rather than only one unit. We seek available architectural, structural, foundation, roof, plumbing, electrical, and mechanical drawings, together with original permits and certificates of occupancy, if available, and relevant later alteration or repair plans.
Please advise whether older archived records require a separate search or were indexed under another address, master permit, developer name, or identifier.
Electronic copies are preferred. Please provide an estimate of any research or copying charges before incurring them. If records are unavailable, please identify what was searched and any other source you recommend.
Thank you,
[Name, association role, and contact information]
Suggested correspondence, not a legal form. Agency access procedures, applicable exemptions, and copying restrictions may affect what can be supplied.
If the original drawings cannot be found
Ask what records were searched, whether older indexing or archives were checked, and whether later permitted projects contain useful background drawings. The original design firm or its successor, prior project professionals, or the original developer’s surviving records may provide additional leads.
If the available record remains incomplete, have an architect or engineer define the information needed and propose suitable field measurement, investigation, or new drawings. Obtain a written scope and fee proposal. A measured floor plan alone will not establish concealed structural or utility details.
Plans found does not mean ready to build
Have the project professional compare drawings with existing conditions, relevant later revisions, and current project requirements. Old plans do not authorize new work or replace required permits and association approvals.
Make the search useful to the next board.
Board Synergy recommendation: maintain a permanent building-reference collection with originals, readable digital copies, and backups controlled by the association.
- Index each set by source, permit number, date, discipline, revision, and scope.
- Preserve signed/sealed originals and original digital files without editing their content.
- Keep later revisions separate and mark superseded versions clearly.
- Record gaps, illegible sheets, and unverified conditions; distinguish professional conclusions from board notes.
- Retain the search log, correspondence, and professionals’ reports with the related project.
- Provide an orderly handover when directors or managers change and follow applicable records-access requirements.
A simple completion check
Can the next board find the files, identify their source and limitations, locate later changes, and know which professional to consult? If so, the association has preserved knowledge as well as paper.
Official sources
- Florida Statutes §718.111 — subsection (12), official records, including applicable developer-provided plans and related items.
- Palm Beach County PZB — Building FAQ — records-search contact and online search guidance.
- Palm Beach County PZB Service Reference Guide — Records (Plans) contact. Also see the PZB public-records request page.
- Palm Beach County Clerk — Official Records, recording information for condominium declarations, and Official Records search.
Prepared October 24, 2026. Practical search, review, and preservation steps are Board Synergy recommendations. No agency representation that a particular building’s plans are available is implied.
Related Board Synergy guides
- Building permits
Understand the approval process for proposed work.
- Building maintenance
Connect building information with ongoing care.
- Property managers
Coordinate records, professionals, and project follow-through.
- A–Z topic index
Explore more association resources.