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Home My WebLink AboutWORKSHOP re DCD Workplan 2025 - slides2025 Annual Workplan Department of Community Development (DCD) Josh D. Peters, AICP, Director Presentation to Board of County Commissioners 2/18/2025 Staff Acknowledgements KEY PRESENTATION CONTRIBUTORS •Chelsea Pronovost, Administrative Services Manager •Phil Cecere, Building Official / Fire Marshal •Greg Ballard, Development Code Administrator •Teams•Permit Center & Admin•Building•Code Compliance•Development Review•Long-Range Planning•Office of the Fire Marshal DCD Special Projects Brent A. Butler, AICP Chief Strategy Officer Permit Center & Administration 2024 ACCOMPLISHMENTS •Customer service •Phone calls: 3 front office staff handled 22,361 phones calls •Emails: Managed 8,966 emails •170 Over-the-counter permits (e.g., mechanical) •250 Building permit intakes (RBLD, CBLD, BWOP) •608 Permit intakes (all types) •Permit Center Coordinator completed 27 Public records requests through Gov QA •Paper -to-Digital Grant award for Enterprise Permitting & Licensing (EPL) enhancement •EPL Customer Self-Service (CSS) phase 1 •Customer account creation •Permit/plan documents available online •Permit tracker viewable on CSS portal 2025 GOALS •Permit tracking –review timelines •Creating area on DCD website for permit timeline reports •Permit issuance timeline goals: •2024 averaged 14.5 weeks for permit issuance •Improvement over 2023 average of 18.3 weeks •2025 goal is ideally 9 weeks or 63 days •65 permits issued between 09/01/2024 and 02/14/2025 averaged 62.4 days for issuance •Connectivity Summit participation –tabling, presenting •CSS phase 2 •Creating additional customer facing reports •Decision tree DCD Building Team & Office of the Fire Marshal 2024 ACCOMPLISHMENTS •Plan review-Approx. 444 Plan reviews (40 Consultant support) •Address cases 115 case reviews •Inspections-3904 individual inspections (not total site visits) •Fire investigations-13 Investigated Fires •Continuing education to maintain Ratings Bureau grade, develop internal skills & capacity •Staff cumulatively tested out 3 new ICC certifications: Commercial Building Inspector, Fire Plan Examiner and Fire Inspector II •One staff member promoted from Inspector I to Inspector II •Fire danger ratings and burn restriction levels •Acquisition of Fire Marshal Vehicle •Acquisition of Surface tablets & Tyler Fire Mobile •STR annual inspection program for STRs vested pre-moratorium • 2025 GOALS •Stock Plans –go “live” with program •Draft ILA with local Fire Districts •C-PACER promotion –grant-funded •Establishing private road and driveway access standards •Addressing E911 ordinance update •CWPP Implementation •WUI integration with CWPP •STR Rental Annual inspection program •Commercial Fire Life Safety Inspection Program •Fire Flow and Fire Hydrant spacing code update •Inspection combination to reduce site visits and improve efficiency •Addition of Clerk hire for on call building and life safety inspections and special projects •Potential addition of Wildfire Safety Coordinator-grant funded DCD 2024 ACCOMPLISHMENTS (INCLUDING ADDRESSING 2023 CHALLENGES) •Site Development Review (SDR) with Legal Lot of Record (LLOR) Determination –worked through early application backlog •Lost ½ staff, new SDR/LLOR process, over 500 SDRs, new permit system (EPL), inexperienced staff •Spent large amount of time on CAMs (suspended till around 7/2024) •New Management DCD June 2023 (Josh, Phil, Chelsea, & Greg) •Hired new staff Fall 2023 (Mo-chi, Andy, Erin, Emily, Nicki) •Trained staff and established specialties •Streamlined SDR, LLOR, building permit review, shoreline permits, stormwater, resource setbacks, lot consolidation •Eliminated SDR backlog July 2024 •Processed 345 SDRs in 2024 (Consultant completed ~190 that included backlog from 2022/2023) •More thorough SDR with less uncertainty (verify through site visit/reports) & development envelope (area) map •Emily doing full SDRs with all requirements and development envelope maps (~ 1 month to issue) •Andy does limited SDRs for infill development on parcels with established homesite area in assoc. with review of dev. permit •DCD Planning signed off on ~230 building permits in 2024 •60 Land Divisions (half Lot Consolidations-reviewed by Assessor, Treasurer, DCD) •~30 Code Compliance cases (7 stop work, 8 Notice of Violations, 15 NOVC) •July 2024 CSS portal (people can check status & can see docs) Planning –Development Review (& Code Compliance) DCD 2024 ACCOMPLISHMENTS (CONT.) •Streamlined permit process (SB 5290) & SEPA through updates to 18.40 in December 2024 •Developed templates for each 15 permit types •See all important docs for land use cases from GIS under permits or CSS portal instead of Laserfiche •DCD permitting functioning great (little complaint on processing time) •Customer service working well –Emily 15 minutes or has Planner assist CAM/pre-app/ Site Visits option •New stand-alone Floodplain Development Permit –following FEMA/Ecology Community Assistance Visit (CAV, late 2023) •Pleasant Harbor Master Planned Resort (MPR) –review of preliminary plat application 2025 GOALS •Keep land use permit review timelines under SB 5290 thresholds •Continuous improvement –Lean thinking •Diversify skillsets within planning team •Complete land use review of PHMPR plat application •Acronyms •EPL –Enterprise Permitting & Licensing (formerly EnerGov) •SDR –Site Development Review •LLOR –legal Lot of Record •CAM –Customer Assistance Meeting •SMP –Shoreline Master Program •NOVC –Notice of Voluntary Compliance •CSS –Customer Self-Service (associated with EPL, parcel data) Planning –Development Review (& Code Compliance) DCD Planning –Long-Range Planning (& Policy) 2024 ACCOMPLISHMENTS •Management of Planning Commission meetings •Shoreline User Guide (SUG) –to complement Shoreline Master Program (SMP) periodic review •Conducted outreach process for update to Short-Term Rental (STR) development regulations •Port Ludlow MPR –preparation for expiration of Development Agreement (DA) in 2025 •Initiated work on 2025 Periodic Update –Growth Management Act (GMA) mandate every 10 years –secured expert consultant assistance amid competition •Growth Management Steering Committee (GMSC) –first update to Countywide Planning Policy (CPP) since early 1990s; adoption of population allocation targets through 2045 •Awarded Middle Housing Grant through Commerce –additional component to 2025 Periodic Update –focus on Irondale & Port Hadlock Urban Growth Area (UGA) •Climate Planning Grant award –funding for new Climate Resilience Element in Comprehensive Plan (as part of 2025 Periodic Update) & first update to Coordinated Water System Plan (CWSP) since 1997 •Update to Flood Damage Prevention Ordinance following CAV •Title 18 code amendments for implementation of SB 5290 •2024 Annual Amendment Cycle•Update to Irondale & Port Hadlock UGA development regulations –phase 1 –preparing for sewer availability in core service area•Title 18 code amendments for rural housing flexibility•Additional light industrial land and opportunity at county airport•Expansion of Port Townsend UGA for first time outside city limits •Awarded Connecting Housing to Infrastructure (CHIP) grant funds for extension of city sewer to Caswell-Brown Village continuum-of-care housing facility DCD Planning –Long-Range Planning (& Policy) 2025 GOALS •In coordination with Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, complete SMP periodic review •Complete update to Short-Term Rental (STR) development regulations consistent with expiration of moratorium on submittal of STR land use applications •Close out FEMA CAV –consider rejoining Community Rating System (CRS) program for lower flood insurance premiums •Continue collaboration with Brinnon Community Task Force on prospective grant applications to address floodplain management, economic development objectives •Complete Glen Cove planning project •public outreach and property owner involvement •analysis of options for UGA extension, infrastructure extension •MOU with City of Port Townsend for future “joint planning” •Continue CWSP update project (expending grant funds by July) •Complete 2025 Periodic Update by end of year per GMA mandate –expend grant funding before July •Fulfill new Housing Element requirements to plan for housing for various income bands; allocate targets using HAPT model (as next step from 2024 GMSC population recommendations) •Complete Middle Housing Grant project –adopt development regulations that enable, incentivize townhouses, etc., in Port Hadlock •Include new Climate Resilience Element in Comp Plan •Complete update of Critical Areas Ordinance (CAO), including review of Best Available Science (BAS) •Amend Future Staffing & Consultant Agreement with Pleasant Harbor MPR, as needed •Prepare for 2026 Annual Comp Plan Amendment Cycle DCD Community Development Director 2024 ACCOMPLISHMENTS •Shoreline Master Program (SMP) periodic review •Glen Cove planning project underway –no assigned staff (yet) •Fee ordinance & resolution –following completion of first DCD fee study in decades •Guiding implementation of multiple DCD-related objectives in 2024-2028 County Strategic Plan 2025 GOALS •Maintain stability •Transition of project management to staff •Finish SMP periodic review •Successful implementation of SB 5290 •Oversee implementation of new STR program •See PHMPR plat application go through public hearing process •Land use review for Habitat for Humanity project near county library & other urban development with sewered area of UGA DCD QUESTIONS? 2025 Annual Workplan Department of Community Development (DCD) Presentation to Board of County Commissioners 2/18/2025