City of North Vancouver Mayor Linda Buchanan is proposing service standards for building permits and business licences, including processing low risk business licences and renewals on the same day or next business day when no inspections or referrals are required.
According to her notice of motion on council’s November 16 agenda, Buchanan is asking council to direct staff to report back by the end of June 2027 with recommended processing standards, application tracking options and a framework for publicly reporting performance.
The motion seeks a staff report by the end of June 2027, rather than immediate implementation of new service standards. It does not establish current application processing times or quantify a backlog.
As a starting point, Buchanan is seeking an assessment of processing times by application category and type. That assessment would distinguish the total time from submission to a final decision from time spent on active city review, applicant responses and external agency requirements.
Staff would recommend processing standards for each permit and licence category, with clear definitions of when the timelines begin, pause and resume.
The notice of motion also calls for plain language application requirements, accessible checklists and guidance before submission to help applicants understand what they need to provide and reduce incomplete or repeat submissions.
Another component would allow applicants to track their application’s progress, including its current review stage, outstanding requirements, who is responsible for addressing them and an anticipated completion date. The proposal also seeks proactive notifications when delays occur.
Buchanan is asking for a framework and implementation timeline for publishing the city’s performance against service standards on its website at least quarterly. That reporting would distinguish total application timelines from city processing times, identifying delays attributable to applicants or external agencies separately.
The motion also seeks recommendations for any necessary changes to construction, business licensing and fee bylaws, alongside measures to streamline applications.
If council subsequently adopts service standards, the motion calls for annual staff reports examining performance, reasons for variations, opportunities for improvement and recommended adjustments.
In separate earlier coverage, the city warned of delays in scheduling building and trade permit inspections amid a high volume of requests. That notice concerned inspection scheduling, rather than the application processing timelines addressed in Buchanan’s motion.
