Amid the rail-to-nowhere debacle, the rusty stadium that’ll never get replaced and the nightmarish zombieland homeless issue, Honolulu’s largest elephant in the room has got to be the broken building permit process.

Not only does the approval for a simple build take upward of 18 months, but the procedure is now an online adventure taking applicants down a wonky, never- ending virtual rabbit hole. Granted, preventing monster homes while ensuring rules are adhered to is paramount, but the absurd delays are severely affecting our local economy.

Thousands of workers — from carpenters, painters, electricians and plumbers, to hardware suppliers and construction equipment purveyors — are sitting idle while waiting for permits. The economic trickle-down impacts have far-reaching and incalculable negative results.

If hiring additional trained personnel (at an enticing wage) is what’s needed, then just do it!

Blair Thorndike

Maunalani Heights

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