Hawaiʻi Island – The County of Hawaiʻi has reported a significant reduction in waiting times for building permits, attributing the improvement to a permitting task force assembled by Mayor Kimo Alameda.
The permitting backlog has been a long-standing challenge for the County. According to a press release from the mayor’s office, the new task force was created to identify and address bottlenecks in the process, resulting in a marked increase in efficiency.
The mayor’s office reported the following progress, comparing the first half of 2025 under Mayor Alameda’s administration to the same period in 2024 under former Mayor Mitch Roth’s administration:
- All Permit Types: The average review and approval duration has been reduced by 66%, from almost five months to under two months.
- Residential New Construction: The average time has been cut by 69%, from more than six months to about two months.
- Residential Rooftop Solar: The process has been reduced by 61%, with most approvals now completed in just over one month.
To further streamline the process, the County is planning a pilot program to consolidate the review of residential rooftop solar photovoltaic (PV) permits, with the goal of providing approval through the intake process itself. The mayor’s office highlighted the efforts of the permitting staff and also included positive comments from local business owners in its release.