Pittsburgh cuts routine permit waits from a week to one day
A first phase of permitting reforms — virtual inspections, an online tracker, and an 'EZ Permits' fast lane — targets low-risk residential and commercial work.
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This story was reported and published by Smart Cities Dive. What follows is our summary of it, and why it matters for people writing policy.
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Facing a shortage of roughly 11,000 affordable homes and about 20,000 vacant properties, Pittsburgh rolled out the first phase of a mayoral permitting overhaul: virtual inspections for projects like deck repairs and demolitions, an online permit tracker, and an 'EZ Permits' fast lane for routine, low-risk work such as window replacement and siding. The mayor's office says permits that used to take over a week now come back in as little as one business day. The reform followed a July zoning-code update from the planning commission, and more phases targeting review, inspection, and completion stages are still to come — a useful staged-rollout model for other cities with permitting backlogs.
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