Nightmarish Delays (Editorial reprinted by permission)

When the D.C. Board of Zoning Adjustment last week concluded its hearings on the National Child Research Center's application for permission to expand the Cleveland Park preschool, it marked the end of a 10-month, nine-session marathon. That is clearly too long for any hearing to drag on.

The zoning board in recent months has labored hard to avoid prolonged delays, with chair Geoffrey Griffis continuing sessions well past the traditional 6 p.m. end time. That is admirable, but given the current press of applications, we do not believe it is sufficient.

We believe that board members must consider scheduling additional meeting dates for particularly thorny cases. It's not hard to identify the bulk of the cases that will prove controversial -- private school expansions and zoning permit appeals are often the most bitter -- and such cases merit special sessions. Saturdays would provide a particular benefit, with citizens able to attend without having to take time off from work. By setting the day aside for just one case, the board hopefully could avoid having to hold over cases from week to week, hearing evidence in two- or three-hour chunks. Parties would also have a definite start time, rather than knowing only that they are the third case in the afternoon session.

Admittedly, board members already make a substantial commitment, with an all-day session each Tuesday in addition to any time required to read written testimony, arguments and briefs. If the extra hours were to become untenable, perhaps the board could be expanded in size, with a rotating cadre assigned to each case.

Situations like the nine-month review of the National Child Research Center's expansion plan do not serve anyone's interests. The school has faced undue delays, if its plan ultimately wins approval. Regardless, it has spent more than necessary on experts and attorneys, having needed them to come back for additional days or to wait as the board addressed other matters. Citizens, pro or con, must also waste their time -- uncompensated. Many of them waste money as well, having hired their own attorneys and experts.