Forum Finds Common Ground for Businesses, Township Officials

After sitting through 90-minutes of township department heads, inspectors and code enforcement officials' presentations on the various functions and duties of their offices at a business forum Wednesday morning, Charles Fung discovered he had inadvertinently cut a corner in getting his business opened.

After officials said the first step for anyone hoping to build or open a business in town was to get a zoning use permit, Fung—who is working on opening a Mathnasium franchise in Nelson's Corners—said he hadn't taken that step, which would be certain to spoil his schedule for opening.

"I'm glad I came here for the meeting because I need to get in and get that approval," he said.

Fung's experience may be typical for Hillsborough's hopeful entrepreneurs: they're well versed in business management but when it comes to the complexities of meeting the myriad of zoning, planning, building and code requirements—well, they may be as helpless as a sous chef at a barn raising.

The refrain heard over and over from the inspectors and township officials was that improperly completed applications cause most delays in getting permits. But even as township officials vowed to do all that's possible to minimize problems and help businesses get opened as quickly as possible, several attendees said it takes too long to get things done in Hillsborough.

"It's not because of a lack of effort on our part that permits aren't going out, it's the level of activity," township Construction Official John Fiedler told the crowd of about 60. 

Fiedler said last year, the township issued more than 3,000 permits—each requiring multiple inspections depending on the complexity of the work. To help manage the volume, the township has created FAQs to guide many projects, and also holds regular meetings between business people, inspectors, building officials, and Business Advocate Gene Strupinsky or Township Administrator Anthony Ferrera, all in an effort to make the process work more smoothly.

Much of the issue seems to stem from expectations: a home remodeling project may seem like a simple matter, but if the change requires a variance from the planning board, you can expect several months before the next step can be taken.

Builders who work in town on a regular basis say Hillsborough is actually much easier to deal with than most nearby communities, where officials are often perceived to be easier to deal with. Custom house builder Greg Porraro said he likes Hillsborough's thoroughness because it eliminates problems later on.

"It's like build-by-numbers—I just have to follow the information," he said.

He added he, too, learned something at the meeting: when work doesn't pass inspections, take care of all of the issues at once, don't do them one at a time.

Real estate agent Don Simmons said his experience working in town has led him to believe the biggest problems come from people trying to skirt around steps or information needed by the township.  

"People always want to find a way around things," he said.

The solution to most trouble is communication, which township officials stressed they are always striving to improve.

"If we weren't serious about these things, we wouldn't be here today," Ferrera said.

Their efforts may be working: one property owner complained of a two-year process for a building project, but did admit the process had gotten better in recent months.