In a unique situation in Washington D.C., selected private firms are authorized to approve development permit applications on behalf of the city's overworked and dysfunctional Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs apartment.
"The process was formalized in a 2002 law and continues to offer anyone who needs a permit a way around the still-dysfunctional and overworked DCRA. Developers pay for the private, city-blessed reviewer and cough up the standard municipal permitting fees when the District gives final approval to a project. Paying for a third-party review buys certainty for developers, who bleed green when projects are delayed.
...In recent years, development has boomed across the city, pushing up demand for permits and inspections. Without the third-party system, the DCRA would be even more overwhelmed than it already is.
...Even those who can afford third-party circumventions are perplexed by the DCRA’s continuing dysfunction. Jim Abdo, president of Abdo Development, can’t understand why the District doesn’t devote more resourcesâ€"and ask bigger fees from fat catsâ€"to beef up the review staff."
FULL STORY: Backlog Rolling
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Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
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New York City School Construction Authority
Village of Glen Ellyn
Central Transportation Planning Staff/Boston Region MPO
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions