Free Enterprise Forum president warns permitting delays saddle developers with high monthly "carrying costs"

Neil Williamson, president of the Free Enterprise Forum, urged the Economic Development Authority to press the Board of Supervisors to examine how scheduling between the planning commission and the board affects development carrying costs.

"My name is Neil Williamson, and I serve as the president of the enterprise forum," Williamson said in public comment, then illustrated the cost of delay with a $1,000,000 project example and an estimated monthly carrying cost. He said, "On the back our back of the envelope pays the carrying cost of between 7,200 and $9,500 a month," and argued that a 10-month delay could push carrying costs well into the hundreds of thousands of dollars for a single project.

Williamson urged the EDA to write to the Board of Supervisors in its advisory capacity to examine public-hearing scheduling "through an economic development lens" and to consider holding planning commission and board hearings closer together so applicants spend less time waiting on permits and associated financing costs. He noted the planning commission typically takes about three months to schedule a final application and the board another three months after that, creating the delay he described.

The comment was made during the meeting's public-comment period; the EDA did not take formal action on Williamson's request during the meeting, but the matter was recorded on the meeting's timeline for possible follow-up.