If you have a Little Rock address but no permit number, begin at CDR Online Lookup, under Lookup Building. Once you identify the matching permit, take its number to WebPermits for the inspection-results route. WebPermits requires that number; it is not the starting address search.
Build an address search around the work period
CDR’s Building lookup offers permit number, applicant and address choices. Planning and Project searches also advertise parcel identifiers. Do not assume that a Planning parcel result is itself a building permit; select the record family that matches the question.
The linked address-search instructions allow partial addresses and specify a 12-month date range. The form separates street number, direction, street name, suffix and unit. Its status choices include In Progress, Closed and All. For a history search, check the dates and status selection before interpreting an empty result.
- Start with the narrowest useful address and a period within the 12-month search range.
- Record the period checked before moving to another year. One year of results cannot settle a question about the previous decade; change one criterion at a time.
- Preserve a possible permit number even if staff must help match an old street name or unit. Take the matched number to WebPermits for inspection information.
Searching ten years when CDR allows twelve months at a time
Because the CDR address search runs over a 12-month date range, a long history has to be built in passes. A simple routine keeps the result defensible:
- Write down the address exactly as you entered it, with unit and direction, and keep it the same for every pass.
- Search one 12-month window at a time with status set to All, starting from the year the work most likely happened.
- Log each window as searched, with the number of results, even when it is zero.
- When a pass returns a relevant permit, copy its number before moving on, then check it in WebPermits for inspections.
- If a stretch of years returns nothing at all, try the older street name or a partial address once before treating the gap as real.
A log like this turns “nothing found” into a specific statement, such as no Building permits for that address from 2014 through 2023, which is the kind of detail the Building Codes Division or a FOIA response can act on.
Carry the number into the inspection record
The WebPermits landing page identifies inspection results and plan status among its functions. It also offers transactional functions such as scheduling and fee payment. For property research, use the record information; a buyer does not need to schedule an inspection or change an existing permit to investigate its history.
Compare the permit’s scope with the actual question. Is it for the addition, a roof repair, or a trade within a larger project? Keep application, issuance, individual inspection results and any final or occupancy evidence separate. A successful intermediate inspection is not a substitute for the missing completion document. The final-inspection guide explains that distinction.
Treat the permit map as another lead
The City’s permit-map service description says its information is imported from CDR. It separates Open Permits from a combined Closed/Voided Permits layer. Those labels do not make a map marker proof that construction was completed: a group expressly containing voided records cannot be read as a list of successful final approvals.
If a map and a permit screen seem inconsistent, save both references and ask which underlying record answers the question. Compare the permit number first. A nearby point, a similar project name or a shared address should not silently become the same permit.
For older files, ask what survives and where
The public lookup pages reviewed here do not state a comprehensive earliest year. Do not use the portal’s age or a recent search result as an archive cutoff. Little Rock’s Building Codes Division handles City construction permitting and inspections; its listed Permit Information and Portal Assistance contact is 501-371-4832 or Permits@littlerock.gov.
Ask about the particular older permit, approved plan, inspection record or certificate you need. Give the property address, approximate work period, known numbers, and any older address appearing on your documents. Confirm that the property is within the relevant City jurisdiction before requesting a City file. The old-permit research guide can help narrow the request.
For a formal request, use the City Attorney’s FOIA page, which applies the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act (Ark. Code Ann. § 25-19-101 and following) and links an online request portal. The page sets out these conditions:
- The requester must be an Arkansas citizen, citing Ark. Code Ann. § 25-19-105(a)(1)(A).
- Records are open to inspection and copying during regular business hours.
- The request must be specific enough for the custodian to locate the records with reasonable effort.
- If copying costs exceed $25, the City may ask for payment before it makes copies.
If you are not an Arkansas resident, ask the records office which access route is available to you before relying on the form. A surviving record and eligibility to obtain a particular copy are separate questions.
A failed page load, an unsearched year, and a missing document are different gaps. Record which one you encountered. None alone establishes illegal work or an unsafe building; likewise, an issued permit alone does not establish completion or present condition.
City of Little Rock permit, map and FOIA pages checked October 20, 2026.