Good

afternoon and welcome to Pittsburgh City Council's cable cast post agenda on permit reform.

I'm Councilman Councilperson Bob Sharlin and I will be chairing this post-agenda post-chend post-agenda discussion today.

We're off to a strong start.

So

today's post agenda is about permit reform and something that I I think we have not done an adequate job telling the story of in the city.

I know it's something that a lot of folks have been working really hard these ten months this year on speeding up the process.

And perma reform is one of those things that is generally not that sexy, but for our council offices, it is a thing that we hear about all the time.

And you know, I'm part of a national network of uh members from local municipalities, and for them, this is like the hot button topic.

It is the sexiest thing to talk about, uh the thing that everyone wants to talk about.

We've got a really good story to tell.

And the reason for having this post agenda today is because I don't believe that that message has got out there that Pittsburgh is making big strides on their permitting.

We're trying to make it easier to attract investment, we're trying to make uh more folks want to do work in the city, uh, open their businesses, build their homes, and I think we need to get the narrative out there more, specifically in national media for folks to hear hear about the work that we're doing.

Um I know that it's something that I've heard from you know from individuals who've gone through the permitting process this year that it has gotten a lot easier, but I don't think it's a narrative that has reached national proportions in the way that we would like it to, and I hope that this post agenda can serve um as a way to start that process here.

So I have some invited guests here from uh well, mayor's office, but also a lot of other departments allow you to introduce yourselves.

The folks that are really working on this uh process over the last 10 months.

Um, and if you would like to introduce yourselves now.

Thank you very much, Councilperson.

My name is Matt Singer.

I work as Deputy Chief of Staff to the Mayor.

I'm Ben Forstate, I'm special projects manager in the mayor's office.

Good afternoon, Tally O'Brien, policy analyst in the mayor's office.

Neil Gerbeck, uh assistant director at TLI of Systems Operations.

Thanks for having

us.

Hello, Alyssa Hannesek, also assistant director, but of construction and the Department of Permits Licenses and Inspections.

Katie Weddick, I'm the assistant director of policy and permitting with the Department of Mobility and Infrastructure.

Carolyn Ristow, I'm the zoning administrator with the Department of City Planning.

Great.

Uh and for the record, we are joined by uh Councilwoman Warwick, Councilwoman Salmetro, and Councilwoman uh Wilson.

And if you would like to start your presentation now, uh we will have questions after

that.

Sure.

I'll get started.

Uh first, thank you, Councilperson Charlotte, for calling this post agenda, and thank you, Council, for your interest in this topic.

Uh, you've heard quite a bit about permitting reform over the last several months, but we haven't had the opportunity to sit down and walk through the full scope of what we know what we've accomplished and where we're headed.

When Mary O'Connor took office, he made modernizing Pittsburgh's permitting system an early priority, issuing an executive order directing us to undertake a comprehensive review of the process.

When I I appeared before council at the beginning of the summer, I made the point that the city has an obligation to get permitting right.

Unlike many of the challenges facing Pittsburgh, this is a process that we own from beginning to end, and we shouldn't be punishing residents for trying to do the right thing.

When people hear about permitting reform, they often think about large developments.

But the vast majority of applications, the city processes are much more ordinary.

They're for residents making repairs to their homes, small businesses improving spaces, and property owners trying to maintain their buildings.

Permitting has a direct impact on the quality of life in our neighborhoods and the vibrancy of our city.

What we discovered early on is that there is no single problem responsible for permitting delays.

It's a combination of issues from unclear requirements and complicated codes to inconsistent procedures and communications across departments.

Looking at the entire process from both the applicants and the city's perspective to identify unnecessary friction and remove it.

And much of this pro and much of the progress we've made has come directly from working with the employees who administer these processes every day.

A central part of our approach is recognizing that not every application should follow the same path.

Complex projects require more attention and coordination, but straightforward applications should be able to move quickly.

The goal isn't to review everything faster, it's to make sure we are giving every application the level of scrutiny that actually requires.

At the end of the day, replacing an air conditioner shouldn't require the same process as building a skyscraper.

Our goal is to give Pittsburgh a nationally competitive permitting system that's clear, predictable, and efficient for everyone who uses it.

We've made meaningful progress toward that goal, but there's still substantial work ahead.

Today we're going to walk you through what we've accomplished, what we're learning, and where we're headed next.

So,

first up, we have an agenda of some of the topics that we will be covering today.

First and foremost, to further frame things.

I want to talk about why permitting reform matters.

You've all heard the mayor say countless times and will continue to hear him say uh this administration needs to prioritize growth for the good of the city and for the good of our residents.

Uh two pillars that we'll focus on a lot in this work is economic development.