County pledges quicker permits

By Jennifer Langston

Herald Writer

Snohomish County Council Chairman Gary Nelson got a call Wednesday morning from a congregation that’s been trying for four years to get the necessary county permits to expand their church.

The county years ago set a goal of processing all building permits within 120 days. That hasn’t happened, Nelson said.

"That’s turned out to be something of a joke," he said. "During the last six years, the county council has made life difficult for a lot of people who have wanted to use their private property, and we have complicated the number of regulations."

The Republican-controlled county council and Snohomish County Executive Bob Drewel, a Democrat, signed a joint resolution this week to stimulate economic growth in Snohomish County, which will include efforts to simplify the county’s land use permitting process.

A task force will focus on improving the county’s business climate by increasing certainty in the regulatory process, as well as speeding up road building and other public projects that would create jobs and encourage new business.

"This is not just about building permits. The strategy is to look at what we can do in a number of venues," Drewel said. "It’s about what we can do to retain and attract new and existing businesses."

The task force co-chaired by Drewel and Nelson is one part of a regional push to lobby the Boeing Co. to build the Sonic Cruiser, a new high-speed jet, in Snohomish County.

It’s also a recognition that the county’s unemployment rate hit 8.1 percent in February, with more Boeing layoffs on the way.

Concerns raised in recent reports on improving Washington’s business climate include the need for better transportation, better training for technology workers and a more straightforward regulatory system.

In addition to creating the task force, the Snohomish County Council is also hiring an outside consultant to look for efficiencies in the county’s Planning and Development Services branch that oversees land use.

The resolution passed unanimously by the council Wednesday requires county departments to create customer service standards and reduce waiting times in service lines and for appointments with staff to discuss permits.

Growth management advocates said they’re wholly supportive of economic development and changes that would indeed make land use permitting more efficient.

But undermining environmental protections and the county’s quality of life under the guise of efficiency would have a detrimental effect on the economy, said Ellen Gray, program director for the Snohomish-Skagit Initiative for 1000 Friends of Washington.

"I just hope that this particular council’s zeal to accommodate their development constituencies does not result in environmental damages, and I think that’s something that the people of Snohomish County have to be very concerned about," she said.

Drewel said the complaint he hears most often from people trying to build a home, add a garage or expand a business is that even when they follow the county’s checklist of steps, there always seems to be more to do.

He said the streamlining effort is not aimed at allowing developers or businesses to find shortcuts around environmental regulations. It’s about making the process more efficient and predictable.

"If we are requiring people to do the same thing twice or we are not clear on our expectations, we need to fix that," Drewel said.

County council member Kirke Sievers said he likes a strategy used by some hospitals. One employee walks a patient through all the procedures from the time they check in to the time they leave.

It’s very difficult for an average person — who can’t afford the consultants and legal help available to large developers — to negotiate the county’s permitting process, he said.

David Toyer, Snohomish County manager for the Master Builders Association, said his industry needs more certainty and reliability. That organization, along with the Snohomish County Economic Development Council, was instrumental in crafting the resolution.

He said the number of applications for new home lots in Snohomish County dropped by 74 percent from 1999 to 2001. But demand has remained strong, which means a looming shortage may drive home prices even higher.

Affordable housing is one factor in being able to attract qualified employees, Toyer said.

"We have to realize that we’re competing globally and nationally right now," he said. "What’s needed is a unified message that brings everyone together and says we have a strategy and a plan."

You can call Herald Writer Jennifer Langston at 425-339-3452 or send e-mail to langston@heraldnet.com.

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