HomeMy Public PortalAboutMSD Accela ACA FAQMSD Accela ACA Plan Submittal FAQs
March 13, 2019
1.) How will I know that MSD has initially received a set of plans or documents for review? MSD
will send an email to all record contacts when the initial application submittal is completed, the
submittal fee (if applicable) has been paid, and the record has been “Accepted” by MSD to begin
the review process.
2.) How do I create a temporary record? When creating an application, press the "save and
resume later" button. A temporary record is created and placed at the top of the “My Records”
list.
3.) Do I need to allow Pop-ups when using MSD Accela ACA? Yes, please allow the site
*.accela.com in your web browser Pop-up Blocker Settings
4.) My client generally pays the fees, including the submittal fee. Is this system set up to allow
them to pay the fees directly? Yes, when you “Create an Application”, please list the Developer
as one of the record contacts. Once the record has a temporary record number (YYTMP-
######) the Developer can log into the system and pay the fees for the temporary record to
complete the application process.
5.) I need to add another contact to a record I am working on. How do I do this? Please contact
your MSD plan reviewer or MSD permit staff to do this. External customers can only add
contacts to records as part of the initial record application process. Once the record has been
“Accepted” by MSD for initial review, any other contacts for the record will have to be added by
MSD staff internally.
6.) Where will the review comments be posted? In most cases MSD will mark up plans and
documents with redline comments. Please see the Record Info dropdown “Attachments” tab for
the latest document markups. For project records, there will also be general plan review
comments posted in the Record Details section, open up the “More Details” dropdown, then
open the “Application Information Table” for general Plan Review Comments.
7.) How will I know when MSD review comments are ready to be viewed, or MSD has approved
the plans? MSD will send an email to all record contacts when review comments have been
posted, and also when plans are approved.
8.) What email addresses should I allow in my SPAM filter? Please allow emails from
Auto_Sender@Accela.com and noreply@stlmsd.com
9.) When is the plan review fee assessed and when is it due? The plan review fee is assessed by
MSD as part of the first review of plans. The review fee must be paid prior to MSD receiving in
the second plan submittal from the customer for further review.
10.) How can I tell what items are left to be completed before my project record can be approved?
On the Record Info dropdown, click on “Record Details” then scroll down and open “More
Details” then open “Application Information Table” to see if there are any remaining plan review
comments that are not yet satisfied (NOTE the “Date Satisfied” will be populated if the review
comment is satisfied). Also check the Record Info dropdown “Related Records” tab, which will
include a list of related records that may need to be approved before your record is approved.
Check the Payments dropdown “Fees” link to see if there are any outstanding fees to be paid
before record approval.
11.) I am a developer and I would like to pay the escrow deposits prior to plan approval to help
expedite the permitting process once plans are approved. Can I do this? Yes, this may be
possible, but please discuss this with your MSD plan reviewer prior to paying the deposits. The
plan reviewer will have to verify the project review status, verify the deposit amounts, and
invoice those deposits prior to payment.
12.) Where can I access the MSD approved plans? On the Record Info dropdown “Attachments”
tab. Once you are there, to help in searching, you can click on the column header “Type” to sort
all the attachments by document category, then scroll to the “Final Approved Plans” category
area.
13.) When searching for records, I obtained lots of results. How do I sort these results? You can
click on the search results column titles to sort the list by that corresponding column title.
14.) When viewing the Record Info dropdown “Attachments” link, there is a long list of
attachments, how do I then sort through this long list of attachments? You can click on the
attachment list column titles to sort the attachments by that corresponding column title.
15.) I have submitted several records. Is there an easy way to find those? Yes, please click on the
“Home” tab at the upper left, then click on the “My Records” link. A list of any records which
you are listed as a contact for will then display.
16.) When I click on “My Records” there is a long list of records. How do I sort through this long
list of records? You can click on the record list column titles to sort the record list by that
corresponding column title.
17.) Is there an easy way to search/find any other records that are related to my project record? In
the Record Info dropdown, click on the “Related Records” tab to see a list of any records related
in the system. From this view you can then easily toggle between the related records by clicking
the “View” link at the far right of each record listed
18.) Why is the map not displaying the correct location for my record? In order for the map to
display the correct location, the necessary GIS information/coordinates must be populated
internally by MSD. In the case of more recently created parcels, MSD may not yet have the
updated property/coordinate information. Note this will typically not hold up the MSD review
and processing of your record.
19.) I have paid a fee, but need a copy of the receipt to bill my client. How can I get a copy of a
receipt? Also, how do I print an invoice from the system? While viewing record information,
click on the Payments dropdown, then the “Fees” link to display any fees. Click “View Details”
on the far right to display a receipt. To print an invoice, find the invoice number in the list of
fees, then click on the “Reports” link at the upper right of the screen, select ACA Invoice Report,
enter the invoice number in the report Pop-up box, and click Submit