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Building and Safety reports shorter review times, higher inspection volume
Summary
The city’s Building and Safety director said permit revenue and construction valuation are strong, turnaround times have fallen, inspection volumes remain high, and staffing changes are aimed at sustaining gains.
John Nielsen, director of Building and Safety, told the council his office reduced commercial plan‑review turnaround from about 40 days to 20 and achieved similar improvements across other permit categories while increasing in‑house capacity.
Year‑to‑date permit revenue was described as about $4.3 million with a construction valuation of about $419 million; Nielsen said roughly a quarter of that valuation came from a single project and that FY24’s construction valuation was $526 million. He said the department averages roughly 170 inspections per day with eight inspectors (about 21 inspections per inspector) and that hiring two additional inspectors would reduce that to around 15 inspections per inspector daily.
Nielsen said the department reduced third‑party plan‑review spending sharply: fiscal year 2023 actual third‑party plan reviews cost about $267,000, FY24 $345,000 and fiscal year 25 so far about $8,000, with an intent to bring more reviews in‑house by the end of the fiscal year.
He summarized recent accomplishments: a 50% reduction in commercial plan‑review times, a 40% reduction in residential plan‑review times, 60% reduction for remodels and additions, an 80% reduction in permit intake times and an 80% reduction in contract plan‑review costs.
Goals for the coming year include processing 95% of applications within one business day for initial intake actions, raising budget‑accuracy forecasts from 72% to 88%, achieving a Citizen Survey satisfaction score target and providing four outreach classes covering sheds, carports, accessory dwelling units, vacant buildings and permitting procedures.
Nielsen attributed improvements to filling vacant positions and reorganizing procedures so staff handle initial intake efficiently and to his “boots on the ground” leadership approach. He proposed dissolving four budgeted (but vacant) positions and finishing recruitment for remaining plan‑review and inspector positions to arrive at a 28‑person team instead of 32 budgeted positions.
Discussion at the workshop included staffing, backfilling a retiree position and the department’s plan to maintain or improve turnaround times by retaining new hires and refining review workflows.
