Broken Industry: Building Deparments

Is the City Working Against Us?

I’ve had it. I spent the better part of last week listening to my team vent about one local building department that continues to wreak havoc on multiple projects. The issues are relentless: inexperienced city staff, too many inconsistent points of contact, plan reviewers quitting mid-project, no clear process, poor communication, and city code that’s either poorly written or badly interpreted. The entire system is a mess.

Our customers are coming to us frustrated and confused, blaming us for delays and extra costs that are out of our control. Builders are being forced to push start dates, reschedule subcontractors, and scramble to keep crews productive while waiting on approvals that should’ve been done weeks ago.

This isn’t just an inconvenience—it’s costing people real time and money. And I’m done quietly absorbing the fallout. Enough is enough.

Every City, Every Department, Every Person—Different

Part of what makes this so frustrating is the overwhelming complexity baked into the system. Every city has its own way of functioning. Within each city, every department tends to operate with its own process—and even within those departments, individual reviewers often have their own way of doing things. There’s no standard. No predictability. No clear path.

The building codes themselves are constantly changing. The forms we’re required to submit are constantly changing. And each city has its own version of both. For a company like ours, working across dozens of jurisdictions throughout the region, the number of touchpoints we’re managing at any given time is massive. We’re communicating with city staff, internal team members, builders, homeowners—all while tracking shifting requirements that vary not just from city to city, but sometimes from project to project within the same city.

It’s not just a permitting process anymore—it’s a full-time navigation of red tape, guesswork, and moving targets. And when that system breaks down, we’re the ones left holding the bag..

Behind the Permit: What We Actually Do

At this point, navigating the permit system requires more than just submitting paperwork—it takes strategy, research, and persistence.

One of the biggest challenges we face is the subjective nature of building codes. These codes aren’t always black and white—they’re often open to interpretation. Our team works hard to interpret the code in ways that make sense for the project and serve the best interests of the customer. That’s our bias, and we’re clear about it: we advocate for solutions that are efficient, reasonable, and aligned with the goals of the people hiring us.

But here’s the problem: the city might interpret the exact same code differently. In fact, even within the same city, different departments—or even different individuals—can have conflicting interpretations. When our reading of the code doesn’t align with theirs, we’re the ones who have to bridge the gap.

This often means bringing in engineers or outside consultants to back up our approach. Other times, despite our research and effort, we have to give in and adjust to the city’s stance—adding time, cost, and complexity to the process.

To be clear, not every project runs into these issues. We’ve had permits sail through without incident. But enough of them don’t—enough get caught in unnecessary delays, miscommunications, and interpretive back-and-forth—that it’s time to talk about it more openly.

These conflicts usually center around things like drainage, site development, or structural design—critical aspects of a project. And resolving them isn’t quick. The back-and-forth can drag on for weeks, especially when city responsiveness is slow or inconsistent.

Through it all, we continue to show up as advocates for our clients—pushing for solutions that are clear, timely, and cost-effective. We don’t just “submit permits.” We fight to make the process work for the people building homes.

The Real Impacts: Time, Money, and Missed Momentum

The most immediate and obvious impact of permitting delays? Time and money—for the homeowner. The longer it takes to get a permit approved, the more hours we spend navigating back-and-forth communication, reviewing city comments, adjusting plans, coordinating with engineers, and resubmitting paperwork. That added time translates directly into increased costs.

Permit-related services can become a significant line item in the overall project budget—one that feels wildly out of proportion, especially because so much of it is outside of our control. We don’t bill for the frustration, but we do have to bill for the time.

But the larger and often more damaging impact is the ripple effect through the construction industry. When permit approvals are delayed, contractors and subcontractors are left in limbo—waiting for the green light before they can mobilize crews, schedule materials, or lock in timelines. These delays disrupt planning and revenue flow for everyone involved.

And this impact gets amplified every time the economy takes a hit and begins to recover. During periods of downturn, construction work often slows. But when things start picking up again—when homeowners are ready to invest, builders are ready to build, and suppliers are ready to deliver—the permitting process becomes the choke point.

Cities are rarely prepared for the surge. Staffing is limited, and hiring typically can’t happen until the next budget cycle. So, while the broader economy may show signs of recovery, the boots-on-the-ground workforce—the framers, electricians, plumbers, and everyone in between—are left waiting for a piece of paper before they can get back to work.

That’s how economic recovery gets stalled at the local level. Not by lack of effort. Not by lack of demand. But by inaction and inefficiency at the one point in the process where everything comes together.

Where Do We Go From Here?

Right now, we’re operating inside a broken system—and honestly, there’s no easy answer. Cities need better processes, more staff, and modernized systems. But all of that takes funding. And as taxpayers, we’re the ones footing the bill for those changes. The solution is both simple and complex: invest in the infrastructure that supports construction.

But fixing permitting isn’t just about adding headcount or upgrading software. It starts earlier—with better planning and design. Architects, designers, and planners need to think critically at the beginning of a project, anticipating the roadblocks that might arise during permitting. And cities need to be part of that process. There has to be real collaboration between the public sector and the professionals doing the work on the ground.

While it’s easy to point fingers, the truth is: everyone involved—city officials, builders, building oweners, consultants, and taxpayers—needs to come together to demand change. Until that happens, we’ll all keep battling the same inefficiencies in a system that should be enabling growth, not stalling it.

Permitting shouldn’t be the bottleneck that holds up an entire industry. It’s time for this to change. How? That’s the million-dollar question. But we can’t even begin to solve it until we start acknowledging the problem, out loud and together.

We have ideas—and we’re actively building a process that we believe is headed in the right direction.

We’d love to connect with others who care about making real, positive changes in how we design, build, and work with cities. If this resonates with you, reach out.

Let’s talk.

Use the contact form at the bottom of this page. Let’s build something better—together.