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Council approves outside review of College Park code-enforcement operations to improve retention and permitting
Summary
Council authorized a contract with Monarch Consulting to assess the Department of Public Services Code Enforcement Division, focusing on staff retention, standard operating procedures, software integration and performance measures; consultant to deliver SOPs and training recommendations within an estimated 3— months.
College Park City Council voted on Oct. 7 to hire Monarch Consulting to perform a comprehensive assessment of the Code Enforcement Division in the Department of Public Services, a review city staff described as aimed at improving retention, clarifying processes and better integrating permitting software.
City staff described recent turnover in both field enforcement and administrative permitting roles, and said internal and external customers had reported inconsistent responses and long permit cycles. Staff asked for an external evaluation to identify training needs, standard operating procedures, performance metrics and software-integration opportunities across permitting and enforcement systems.
CeCe Muella of Monarch Consulting, who joined the meeting remotely for a brief Q&A, outlined a phased scope including an intake and staff interviews, process mapping, recommendations for training and standard operating procedures, and development of an onboarding and training package for new hires. The proposal estimated a total cost of about $30,000 and a 3-to-4-month timeline, with the consultant recommending immediate on-the-job training and a written SOP to improve day-to-day consistency.
Councilmember Riggs moved to approve the agreement "subject to the approval of the city attorney," the motion was seconded and approved by the council. Staff said funding for the contract would be offset in part by salary savings from recent vacancies and that the consultant would work with the department and Human Resources to implement the deliverables.
"One of the biggest concerns is staff retention," City staff said. Councilmembers asked to ensure residents have an opportunity to comment on enforcement priorities; the consultant said community input would be part of the assessment interviews and recommended public-facing SOP elements once the draft is complete.
The council approved the contract; staff will finalize terms with the city attorney and return with a schedule for interviews, deliverables and a timeline for presenting recommendations to the council.
