Commercial developers to see faster approvals
The McCoart Government Complex
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By Cheryl Chumley
Published: May 21, 2008
A new plan will go far toward countering perceptions that Prince William is a county that throws roadblocks in the path of commercial developers, according to a staff presentation to supervisors on Tuesday.
The pilot BUILD Initiative in Commercial Development Services kicks off in the coming weeks, and by August, it should be determined whether the goal of an improved permitting process has been met, said Susan Roltsch, assistant county executive.
“We hear about this all the time – the difficulty some businesses have expanding,” said Chairman Corey Stewart, R-At-large. “I’m glad to see you have a fairly aggressive timetable.”
The initiative calls for the establishment of a group of “process facilitators,” according to documents presented the board, who provide developers a “single point of contact” to address permitting issues. Team members are basically tasked with ensuring applicants aren’t burdened with redundant and unnecessary directives from the various county departments involved in the permitting process – a scenario that has “been a stickler for some time,” said Supervisor Maureen Caddigan, R-Dumfries.
Specifically, Roltsch described, team goals are to shorten the “timeframe for project approval” and provide applicants a more predictable set of guidelines to follow. Ultimately, staff will also put to paper a Partnership Bill of Rights that solidifies these guidelines further, she said.
“This package … is very transformational,” said Supervisor Frank Principi, D-Woodbridge. “I like the idea of the team.”
By July, commercial developers submitting permits can expect to be processed through this new program; in August, supervisors will hear updates on how the pilot has progressed. The program is also aimed at speeding the process for residential permit applicants and with success, could eventually apply to special use and other types of permitting processes.
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Posted by ( fontbonne ) on May 24, 2008 at 10:40 pm
First of all, developers don’t ‘submit permits’, they submit plans in order to obtain permits.
“There’s being “friendly” and then there’s pandering. The BOCS is pandering…So much for Mr. Stewart’s claim he will stop development. One more lie to add to his long list….“
You have hit the nail squarely on the head. There are certain commercial builders/developers who have the ears of Mr. Stewart, Mr. Stirrup, and Mr. Covington, principally because…well, follow the money.
Now that Mr. Stewart has made a name for himself with the anti-illegal plank of his campaign for higher office, he is going to turn his focus to development. He is fully aware that the anti-illegal resolution has harmed the economic climate in PWC, so in order to burnish his conservative credentials, he is going to do something to make himself look ‘business friendly’.
“by August it should be determined whether the goal of an improved permitting process has been met”
How is this even possible? How can they possibly gather enough data to demonstrate and substantiate the improvements in such a short time frame?
The whole thing stinks like three week old tuna.
“Why? Why should every commercial development project expect to gain approval, and faster rather than slowly and with appropriate public input?“
The developers just want to be able to buy a piece of land and build on it, regardless of the impact to the surrounding properties and without proper oversight of construction. It’s really just that simple. Why should they care what the neighboring property owners want? Why should they care whether the building is safe, once they have their money?
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Posted by ( RonCharest ) on May 21, 2008 at 2:38 pm
From what I read into, the basic assumption is that anyone who applies for commercial development will get approved.
Why? Why should every commercial development project expect to gain approval, and faster rather than slowly and with appropriate public input?
Recently we had a LTE deploring the rezoning of lovely farmland in a scenic and historic area of PWC for warehouse development. Public input was apparently completely ignored in the BOCS making this decision. Seems to me if existing land-use planning shows that the proposed development is not appropriate for that location, then the developer should be expected to make the case for why their project should go forward in full view of the public.
Commercial development permits are not necessarily the same as a business permit. A person can start a business without building a new structure, so those are two issues and not one.
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Posted by ( kgotthardt ) on May 21, 2008 at 1:05 pm
Seems like the BOCS has already started this by allowing commercial developers to mislead residents with the message, “You have no choice. We WILL develop here one way or the other.“
Guess what? We DO have a choice.
Why not support current businesses, fill up all those empty buildings, stop creating more traffic, and preserve what we have here in the county?
There’s being “friendly” and then there’s pandering. The BOCS is pandering.
So much for Mr. Stewart’s claim he will stop development. One more lie to add to his long list….
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Posted by ( John B ) on May 21, 2008 at 12:40 pm
This should not just be done for developers but all businesses opening up in PWC. Every person I know who’s tried to start a business in this county had to deal with unacceptably long delays and conflicting citations or recommendations from Planning and Engineering. This county needs to learn how to be friendly to other businesses besides the corporate big box stores and this is a good way to start.
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