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Bargersville planning department reports 677 permits in 2024; commission to review fee schedule and staffing
Summary
Town planning staff presented a 2024 year-in-review showing 677 permits issued, discussed how permit and capacity fees fund inspections and staff, and commissioners asked staff to compare fees with peer municipalities and evaluate staffing capacity and a proposed department reorganization.
Chelsea, Bargersville’s town planner, presented a year-in-review to the Planning Commission on Jan. 21 showing that the development department issued 677 permits in 2024 and provided a five-year permit and permit-fee summary.
Chelsea said permit types in the report ranged from building permits to utility permits and encroachments and that most fees help cover staff time and inspections. ‘‘A lot of them are utility fees…most of them, if not all of them, also include inspections. That helps pay for our inspectors’ time,’’ she said.
Commissioners pressed staff on the workload and how permit revenue supports department capacity. Commissioners noted that 677 permits equates to roughly 25 permits per month and asked whether fee schedules are competitive with comparable municipalities. Chelsea told the commission she has identified the fee schedule as an item that needs review and that any fee changes would be adopted by ordinance through the Town Council.
Discussion also covered internal staffing and proposed changes. Staff described recent and planned personnel moves: Sarah (staff) has returned from maternity leave; Bailey was hired full time as a constituent relations specialist to handle customer-service calls and walk-ins so planners can focus on permits; staff said these steps are intended to help the planning team keep up with a rising workload. Commissioners asked staff to prepare a comparison of fee structures and of planning-department staffing levels in similar Central Indiana communities and report back at a subsequent meeting.
Commissioners and staff also discussed a draft charter proposal that would create a planning department director, two assistant directors (one strategic and one technical), senior planners and additional technical staff if workload and revenues support the expansion. Chelsea described the charter draft as a longer-term organizational option under consideration by staff and council.
No ordinance changes were proposed or adopted at the Jan. 21 meeting; commissioners asked staff to return with comparative data on fees and staffing.
