Long the bane of developers and individual homebuilders alike, the Atlanta Bureau of Buildings now averages 40 to 80 days to provide building permits. Meanwhile, in suburban Gwinnett and Cobb Counties, the turnaround time is under one hour.
The recent boom in construction in the City of Atlanta has "overwhelmed the city's planning bureaucracy," causing delays both for big and small builders, and everyone in between. Critics say the permit-issuing Bureau of Buildings is a "plodding and disorganized obstacle that retards economic growth and drives up the cost of houses, condos and other buildings."
That sentiment was confirmed in a recent study by the University of Georgia's Carl Vinson Institute of Government in which "47 percent of respondents rated the city average to failing when it comes to issuing permits. Respondents complained that their documents were lost in the government bureaucracy and that they couldn't get their questions answered."
Mayor Shirley Franklin is counting on a new planning director to improve the situation.
FULL STORY: Building in the city? Be prepared to wait

Trump Administration Could Effectively End Housing Voucher Program
Federal officials are eyeing major cuts to the Section 8 program that helps millions of low-income households pay rent.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

The 120 Year Old Tiny Home Villages That Sheltered San Francisco’s Earthquake Refugees
More than a century ago, San Francisco mobilized to house thousands of residents displaced by the 1906 earthquake. Could their strategy offer a model for the present?

HSR Reaches Key Settlement in Northern California City
The state’s high-speed rail authority reached an agreement with Millbrae, a key city on the train’s proposed route to San Francisco.

Washington State Legislature Passes Parking Reform Bill
A bill that would limit parking requirements for new developments is headed to the governor’s desk.

Missouri Law Would Ban Protections for Housing Voucher Users
A state law seeks to overturn source-of-income discrimination bans passed by several Missouri cities.
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