The Taunton Daily Gazette raises an interesting question: Should the building permit process in Massachusetts be made easier? The Op-Ed at the Gazette thinks the answer is yes.
According to the Taunton Gazette, the permitting process in Massachusetts is exacting and time-consuming. It can take a year or more to get even a simple subdivision from concept to construction. For all its frustrations, that process generally results in projects that are well-designed and responsive to community concerns.
The following are excerpts from the Taunton Daily Gazette:
The housing market in Massachusetts seems to have stabilized, and the economy is slowly recovering. It would recover even faster if construction companies would start building houses again, but there’s a problem: Many of the project approvals, so long in deliberation, have expired. Under current laws, they may have to go back to square one in the state and local permitting maze and get approved again before the first nail can be hammered.
Two bills before the Legislature would alleviate this problem by granting a three-year extension to “shovel-ready” projects that have already received state and local approvals but were held up by financing difficulties. A bill now before the House Ways and Means Committee limits the extension to projects approved in 2008, 2009 and 2010. Similar language is included in the economic development bill already approved by the Senate.
Read the enitre article
What are your thoughts?
