Survey data shows homeowners’ dissatisfaction in city’s permit process

Homeowners living in the Lake Whatcom watershed are frustrated with Bellingham’s environmental regulations in that area. One of these regulations involves the city’s permit process for land development which the city says is intentionally complicated to meet environmental standards. 
 
The most recent customer service survey data from the Planning and Community Development Department’s permit center details the following for one-time or infrequent permit users, many of whom are residential homeowners, in the second half of 2012:

• Twenty percent of these users reported their experience as being less than satisfactory. This is the highest dissatisfaction rate for this group since the second half of 2009.
• Twenty-nine percent of these users reported dissatisfaction with the timelines and transparency of the permit process. This number has increased from 15 percent in the second half of 2011.
• Thirty-three percent of these users reported having no single point of contact, such as communication with a service desk or department coordinator. While this has decreased from 59 percent in the first half of 2012, it has also increased from 24 percent in 2008.
• Nine-percent of these users reported being uninformed about information regarding necessary permit reviews and timelines. This is an increase of two percentage-points since 2011, yet a decrease of 10 percentage-points since 2008.

 
Infrequent permit users were the second-most common type of customers for the permit center in this time frame, behind contractors. Along with these users, developers, designers, architects and engineers were also surveyed about customer service. In many survey categories, these other groups reported lower rates of dissatisfaction with the city’s permit process than infrequent permit users.
 
According to the city’s current Lake Whatcom Watershed Build-out Analysis, there are 1,595 residential units in the city limits and 6,866 residential units overall that fall under the development regulations for this area. The owners of these units are required to obtain the proper permits from the city if they want to make changes to their land, such as replacing or adding additions to their home, deck, driveway, patio or lawn.