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County planners outline permitting overhaul, prioritize intake, dashboards and AI pilots
Summary
Planning and Development presented progress on 34 consultant recommendations—11 already underway—and proposed intake improvements, a dashboard to track application completeness, code‑enforcement software upgrades and limited AI pilots for screening and code research. The committee asked for quarterly updates and accepted the report.
The Planning and Development Department on March 17 told the Housing, Land Use, Environment and Transportation Committee it is implementing a multi‑year transformation of the county’s permitting system that integrates people, process, policy and technology to reduce delays and increase transparency.
"We are standing up our people‑centered services relative to our permit process transformation," said Jacqueline Onciano, Director of Planning and Development, summarizing the department's response to a February referral. Staff said 34 consultant recommendations were delivered and 13 were prioritized; of the 34, 11 projects are already in progress.
Deputy Director Stewart Patry described two early AI use cases staff have evaluated—application screening and building‑code research—that could speed intake and plan review. Patry said the county is also modernizing core software modules for document management and code enforcement to reduce ad hoc spreadsheets and manual handoffs.
Dr. Marilyn Underwood, Director of Environmental Health, described steps to clarify onsite wastewater and well requirements for applicants, including updated website materials, lists of consultants and contractors and a redline of the onsite wastewater manual. "We want these flows to make sense to the owner of the property," Dr. Underwood said.
On fees and staffing, planning staff said much of the work is driven by staff time and that the department is pursuing a move toward full cost recovery through an annual fee review process; staff plans to bring fee recommendations to the committee before the new fiscal year.
Supervisor Arenas moved—and Chair Abe‑Koga seconded—to accept the report and request quarterly updates; the motion carried on roll call.
Next steps: staff will provide quarterly progress reports on the prioritized recommendations, supplemental materials on how external stakeholder feedback is mapped to specific process changes, and any proposed fee adjustments for committee review.
