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Town outlines Hub Connect e-permitting rollout and seeks workflow input from Board of Health
Summary
Town staff described a multi-stage rollout of a new e-permitting platform (Hub Connect/Hub Health), requested the board map workflows for septic/inspection approvals and said interns from Fitchburg State may help build sustainable online forms and backend automations.
At the April 8 meeting staff presented the town’s Hub Connect e-permitting initiative and asked the Board of Health to map permit workflows so the team can configure required fields, approvals and inspection steps before the Board’s modules go live.
Staff said the first round of e-permitting (building, electrical, gas, mechanical and plumbing) is scheduled to be released April 16. The Board of Health and DPW modules are expected in a following round; staff did not give a firm month but indicated it could be May or June.
Staff described features the system will provide: required fields to prevent incomplete submissions (for example, requiring installer identity before a septic permit can be submitted), automated notifications, auto-populated spreadsheets and SharePoint files, and a web interface for real-time data on open permits. The aim is to reduce repetitive manual work and provide accurate open-to-close timing for different permit types to support data-driven budgeting and staffing decisions.
Staff requested the board think through “who approves what and when,” and said an intern from Fitchburg State College could be engaged to draft workflows, build forms and create power-automate back-end flows. The board agreed to review existing forms on the town site and prepare suggestions for required fields and approval steps; staff said Nancy would typically act on approvals during or after meetings (approve, deny, seek clarification) through the system’s interface.
Staff said the town branding effort calls the overall program Hub Connect with modules such as Hub Fix, Hub Inspect and an option for a Board-specific name like Hub Health. Town staff emphasized the intention to create sustainable, centralized digital services with counter iPads and a live backend for reports and grant applications.
Board members asked staff to return with a proposed workflow for septic permits and inspection handling to reduce back-and-forth revisions during configuration.
