The Tragic Comedy of Small Business Permitting

Let’s end the year on a slightly libertarian note, with a suggestion for a New Year’s resolution for cities: quit giving small business a hard time.

Over holiday drinks, a Cambridge restaurateur told me the story of how he removed caramelized Brussels sprouts from the menu after complaints in the building about the smell. There wasn’t a code about that as far as they could tell, but with rules about everything from awnings to bathroom door handles, management wasn’t taking any chances. Better just to nip it in the sprout.