Notcross Issues Business Permit Before Applicant Retires

The City of Notcross is pleased to report another milestone in its ongoing transformation. On Tuesday, the Development Services Department issued a business occupancy permit to a downtown retail applicant nine days after the application was submitted.

The applicant, who was 41 at the time of filing, was 41 at the time of issuance.

"Under the old process, we measured permitting in seasons," the Director of Development Services said. "An applicant would come in with a dream and a lease, and by the time we got back to them, the lease had expired and the dream had relocated to Duluth. We decided that was not a service."

Median permit issuance in Notcross now stands at nine days, down from fourteen months in the period preceding the Great Notcross Epiphany. The department attributes the change to three adjustments: a published checklist, a single point of contact, and a standing instruction that staff answer the telephone.

The department has met or exceeded its nine-day median for four consecutive quarters. Staff acknowledge that other cities have long considered this normal, and note that Notcross intends to consider it normal as well, in time.

Businesses interested in opening in Notcross are encouraged to contact Development Services, where someone will respond.