The Daily News covers the Planning Department's overhaul of its never-realized 12-2 planning program, which is supposed to streamline the city permitting process for developers. So far, the city has managed to whittle the steps down to 17, according to the Daily News, which covers "The Build L.A. proposal." The program will be heard before this week before the Planning and Land Use Committee (a simple demonstration was also given about two weeks at another PLUM meeting). Will the neighborhood groups be watching? Naturally. Via the Daily News: "But even as the city tries to streamline the process for business, some neighborhood groups are concerned that it will be too friendly to developers and not give local residents' concerns enough weight." Meanwhile, the Downtown News reports that LA Economic Czar Austin Beutner recently spoke at at a Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce meeting about the plan.
And once again, Beutner likens the process of putting up a building to buying loafers. Via the Downtown News: "Beutner told the Chamber audience that once the process is improved, a model for the new system is the customer service operation employed by Internet shoe seller Zappos.com." And more about what's actually proposed: "Ray Chan, executive officer of the Department of Building and Safety, detailed a system that will alter the current method of developers completing designs before moving to the plan check stage; both of those can be lengthy. In the new “Parallel Design-Permitting Process,” plan checks will begin in the conceptual design phase. Design and permitting would then run concurrently, with problems being addressed along the way. It will allow developers to secure a building permit by the time final drawings are completed. The process, Chan said, could save months."
· LA revamps plan to help businesses with permit process [Daily News]
· Development Reform, Development Revolution [Downtown News]
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