Cost of housing permits, fees too high in Olympia

It is wonderful to see that the Low Income Housing Institute’s new apartment complex will be named after Billy Frank Jr. and that Olympia was willing to reduce the cost of the property to help make this happen.

However it would help to know if the usual permits and fees are being charged, and if so what will those cost. From what I understand the cost of permits for a house in Olympia exceeds $30,000 and that is before the first shovel of dirt is turned.

What will the permits and fees run for a building this large? How that compares to other cities in Washington as well as nationally would be interesting to know. Who benefits from these costs -- is it the banks, insurance companies and property owners or is it possibly just the city hall budget?

The high costs of permits and fees reduce the supply of housing which makes it difficult for low income families to find shelter and it also reduces job opportunities for blue collar workers.

Basically it seems fair to refer to these regulations as the anti-prosperity rules.

This story was originally published June 3, 2016 at 9:00 AM with the headline "Cost of housing permits, fees too high in Olympia."