Salem Lakes EDC asks staff, Kenosha County to map permitting workflow to speed reviews

The Salem Lakes Economic Development Committee asked staff and Kenosha County representatives to produce a clear flowchart of the current permitting and review process so the village can identify bottlenecks and improve timelines. Committee members said a visual map of who does what — village steps, county steps and handoffs — will make it easier to find quick improvements while a longer code rewrite proceeds.

A draft timeline: Unidentified Speaker 6 proposed using agenda item 6.2 as a kickoff to request a flowchart from village staff and Kenosha County, describing the "early assistance" model used elsewhere where applicants meet all reviewing departments at once. Unidentified Speaker 7 (staff respondent) said he would "talk to Amy" and aimed to get an initial workflow out in about two weeks, potentially before the holidays.

Why it matters: Participants said county reviews are a frequent source of delay and cost for applicants, and a clearer step-by-step process—combined with pre-application meetings—could reduce the need for multiple engineering hires or repeated submissions. Unidentified Speaker 4 noted the village might lead by offering clearer guidance to homeowners and small commercial applicants to reduce unnecessary engineering costs.

Next steps: Staff will prepare and circulate an initial workflow/flowchart; the committee said it will review the draft by mid-December and may hold a short follow-up or Teams meeting for clarifications. The committee also recommended that the fire chief and other relevant departments attend pre-application meetings when necessary.