Community Development director details staffing, permit workload and housing pipeline

Derek Tokos, Community Development Director, told the Newport City Council on the work‑session agenda that the department has 6.47 full‑time equivalent staff and is balancing customer service, code administration and project work while supporting several ongoing housing and infrastructure efforts.

Tokos said the department spends much of its time assisting residents at the counter and processing building permits. "It's a lot of time on the customer assistance, building services side of it," he said, describing the counter work that helps homeowners and developers get applications ready. He also described the inspection workload for new single‑family homes: "that typically is about 16 inspections from start to finish to ensure that it meets building safety codes."

The update summarized local development trends and active projects. Tokos said the city's housing‑capacity analysis identifies a capacity target of about 30 new units per year, while a state housing needs assessment that includes pent‑up demand puts the figure at about 116 units per year; Newport's average permitting over the past decade has been about 60 units annually. "We have 90 units just Windhaven under plan review right now," Tokos said, and he noted the Hatfield student‑housing project of roughly 77 studio units should be wrapping up toward the end of the summer. He also listed a number of projects in review or construction including multifamily phases in Wilder, a Coastal Farm/Coastal Farm store proposal, the joint fire response facility, and future community college and Central Lincoln projects.

Tokos described several incentives and code changes intended to ease development. He said the city is using its affordable‑housing excise tax fund to pay building permit fees for certain qualifying market‑rate projects of 20 units or more; he estimated that the permit fee offset for the Windhaven project likely would be in the $140,000–$150,000 range. He also estimated typical building permit fees for a 12‑unit building package at about $25,000. On code changes, Tokos explained a recent garage‑setback amendment that allows a garage setback to be measured from the edge of curb rather than the property line, which he said gives homeowners more flexibility on smaller lots.

Short‑term rental licensing, Bayfront parking demand management, and city‑center revitalization work were also identified as ongoing department commitments. Tokos said short‑term rental licensing requires inspections and sometimes work to bring properties into compliance, and that the department has spent substantial staff time assisting property owners and managers with electronic permitting and fleet/license management.

Council members asked clarifying questions about project timing, affordable versus market‑rate units and parks in new neighborhoods. Tokos said Northwest Coastal Housing's senior project (the 32‑unit project near the dog park) is an income‑restricted senior housing project at roughly 60 percent area median income; Windhaven units are market rate. On parks he said park dedications and Parks SDC credits are negotiated with developers and informed by the Park System Master Plan.

The presentation included a reminder that the city plays a supporting role in housing production but does not build homes itself: "We don't build homes. There are limits to what the City can do to nudge projects forward," Tokos said, noting many development constraints — lending, land costs and off‑site infrastructure — are outside city control. He said staff routinely works with developers on infrastructure financing and SDC timing to help projects pencil out.

Staff signaled next steps: Northwest Coastal Housing's building plans are expected this fall, Windhaven remains under plan review, and staff will continue to use targeted incentives and code adjustments to facilitate housing production.