Is LA cutting red tape? Man’s 11-year permitting journey suggests no

This is why corporations are fleeing California.  Want to know why firms expand in other States, instead of California?

“John Gregorchuk, a multifamily housing developer and YIMBY Action Los Angeles lead, first received entitlements for a 59-home structure in May 2024, a process that took a decade. 

After securing entitlements — permission to build the kind of structure he wants to — Gregorchuk then had to get approval from the Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety for his permit, then get clearances from 10 more departments.

“Our project was granted planning approval in May 2024, but the building permit requires 30 separate sign-offs across 10 different departments before it can be issued,” Gregorchuk told The Center Square. “The departments are siloed and refuse to communicate with each other. Not a single person in the city has been able to explain how to get a building permit because the process is so complex and distributed.”

Gregorchuk’s tree saga began as he sought his clearance from the Los Angeles Bureau of Engineering, as he and the city had reached an agreement for him to place a required tree in a sidewalk space.”

Few has the time or resources to wait TEN years to get a permit to build housing.  Could this be why we have a housing shortage?  I feel sorry for the people of Pacific Palisades—just as Watts was a waste zone for thirty years after the 1965 Watts Riots, the Palisades will be the new Watts.

Is LA cutting red tape? Man’s 11-year permitting journey suggests no

By Kenneth Schrupp | The Center Square, 4/17/25  https://www.thecentersquare.com/california/article_19e9b6fd-af02-43ee-b65d-a6e5195edb20.html?utm_source=california.thecentersquare.com&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=today-s-top-california-headlines-current_date_mdy&_bhlid=c59d5c1b9b38935223b8717e0d91d414ef2f45f4

(The Center Square) – Earlier this week, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass spoke at UCLA to tout her success in cutting “red tape.”

But one man’s two-month slog to get a permit approved to plant a required tree — and the handful of rebuilding permits approved over three months after fires destroyed over 5,000 Pacific Palisades homes — paint a different picture of the mayor’s recent tenure.

John Gregorchuk, a multifamily housing developer and YIMBY Action Los Angeles lead, first received entitlements for a 59-home structure in May 2024, a process that took a decade. 

After securing entitlements — permission to build the kind of structure he wants to — Gregorchuk then had to get approval from the Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety for his permit, then get clearances from 10 more departments.

“Our project was granted planning approval in May 2024, but the building permit requires 30 separate sign-offs across 10 different departments before it can be issued,” Gregorchuk told The Center Square. “The departments are siloed and refuse to communicate with each other. Not a single person in the city has been able to explain how to get a building permit because the process is so complex and distributed.”

Gregorchuk’s tree saga began as he sought his clearance from the Los Angeles Bureau of Engineering, as he and the city had reached an agreement for him to place a required tree in a sidewalk space.

Among the seven BOE clearances he needed was from Driveways, Curb Ramps and Sidewalks. To get the BOE permit to cut open the sidewalk to plant the tree, a protective barrier to ensure the roots grow down and don’t damage the sidewalk, and a deep root watering system, Gregorchuk was sent to the Urban Forestry Division.

To get the Urban Forestry Division tree permit, Gregorchuk was told he would need to get a tree bond — that is, pay up front for the tree’s future maintenance or issues in case the owner (Gregorchuk) fails to do so.

After several rounds of failed email conversations, Gregorchuk was issued a bond preparation fee of $1,042.80 and a bond estimate of $2,000. 

Gregorchuck was confused by the bond figure, as the bond estimate receipt said the tree bond would cost $987, while the 15% contingency on the bond would cost another $148.05, or a total of $1,135.05. 

“Can you tell me how $987 + $148 = $2,000?” asked Gregorchuk. 

“Bond estimate totals are typically rounded to a whole number,” replied the city, suggesting its policy is to round to the next thousand dollars, not the next dollar.

After turning in his bond fee and bond estimate to get the bond issued, Gregorchuk was informed that the city no longer required bonds for trees any more — as of last week, or a month after Gregorchuk started documenting his then one-month old tree bond saga on X, suggesting Gregorchuk’s posting could have precipitated the change. 

Gregorchuk then had to explain to UFD that the city no longer requires tree bonds and then after getting UFD approval, prove to BOE that he has UFD approval. 

Now that Gregorchuk has been able to submit the permit for his new tree without the tree bond, he can move on to the next set of clearances for his project.

But that’s not all. Gregorchuk said he’s not supposed to plant the tree until the project is nearly complete three years from now so as to avoid any potential damage to the tree. 

Yet the kind of tree permits Gregorchuk secured are only good for six months. That means Gregorchuk will continue to have to renew the permit until he plants the tree. However, because the project’s clearances can’t move forward until a tree permit is active, Gregorchuk has no choice but to get the tree permit now. 

Gregorchuk said cutting open the sidewalk, buying and installing the city-approved tree, and installing the protective barrier and deep root watering system will cost around $2,500.

Even after all this, Gregorchuk may end up paying even more for the tree in the future due to possible lawsuits over any cracks or unevenness in the sidewalk caused by the tree. 

An entire industry of lawyers exists to sue the city and property owners for sidewalk issues. In 2016, Los Angeles reached a $1.4 billion sidewalk settlement. A 2021 city audit found the city spent $35 million between 2016 and 2021 on more sidewalk payouts, highlighting the issue’s costs for the city and property owners. 

“In most cases, homeowners can be held liable for sidewalk accident injuries if they contributed to the disrepair or dangerous condition of the sidewalk,” said personal injury firm Samer Habbas. “On the other hand, the city will be liable if the injured party can prove that the injury was caused by the dangerous condition of the sidewalk.”

Gregorchuk’s personal experience suggests this may be possible. In 2007, when the city was doing work next to a construction project of his, someone tripped over the city’s utility cover plate, and sued the city, but also his business and even his father personally for their proximity. 

“Insurance settled it to make it go away. It was under $10,000,” said Gregorchuk, noting the cost of going to trial, even though the fall was not on his property or involving his project at all, would have cost over $20,000. Not only did the individual who fell sue, but so did her husband, for a surprising reason. 

“She sued us because she tripped and fell, and her husband sued us because he could not have sex with his wife,” recalled Gregorchuk.

Gregorchuk said issues like these are chasing builders out of the city — which has been compounded by Measure ULA, the city’s transfer tax on all properties over $5 million at the time of passing. 

With Measure ULA hitting building profits — taking a flat 4% or more — which can exceed net profit on some costlier projects — longer holding costs due to permitting delays pile on more interest, making buildings even more expensive. 

“The bureaucracy leads to increased fees and holding costs, but its largest impact is that it chases builders out of LA,” Gregorchuk said.

According to economic and real estate development research firm Hilgard Analytics, home permitting in Los Angeles has been declining since 2022, when the city permitted 15,285 homes — reflecting declines in applications. In 2023, the city approved 11,311 homes. In 2024, the city approved just 8,706, a 43% decline from 2022. 

Measure ULA passed in November 2022 and went into effect in April 2023.