Legislative Plan to Speed Up Permitting Process Gets Mixed Reviews

The bill, introduced by state legislators earlier this week, is intended to simplify the state's permitting process by shortening the appeals process and adding judges familiar with development and environmental issues to the state's Superior Court system. The proposal also would create a state permit regulatory office to address the needs of large companies that want to relocate to Massachusetts and coordinate the approval process required by various state agencies.

"It would bring real substantive changes to the way things are being done now," notes David Begelfer, president of the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties' Massachusetts Chapter, tells GlobeSt.com. "It will encourage development by bringing a lot more certainty and timeliness to the process."

But Gregory Vasil, acting CEO with the Greater Boston Real Estate Board, tells GlobeSt.com that while there are many aspects of the proposal that developers will embrace, the legislation is actually designed to spur job growth. "I think what you'll see is that some of the red tape around development will be cut away and that is always a good thing, but this bill is really geared towards trying to create jobs and getting companies to locate here."

Rob Dickey, who runs the development services group for the Boston office of Spaulding & Slye, tells GlobeSt.com that the legislation does not offer any incentives for communities to implement the voluntary plan. "The idea to streamline the permitting process in a community to stimulate growth is a noble idea but how will it work if it's a volunteer program? If towns don't participate, then it's not going to succeed."

Under the measure, cities and towns who voluntarily participate in the plan would be allowed to designate single sites for development and could receive state funding to pay for staffing or consulting needs. Communities that participate will also be required to act on building permits within 180 days of submissions. The legislation would also give $500,000 to the Massachusetts Alliance for Economic Development to advertise development sites and provide permitting specialists. It also would allot $1.85 million in funding to regional planning agencies to help municipalities with permitting rules.