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Consultants recommend hires, clearer PACK rules and tech fixes after Prescott City CDD review
Summary
Rafelis consultants advised Prescott City to add three CDD positions, realign reporting lines, tighten pre-application water review thresholds, improve permit checklists and integrate water workflows in CentralSquare to reduce repeat reviews and improve on-time performance; councilors discussed timing, fees for repeat submittals and budget constraints.
Consultants from Rafelis presented an operational assessment of the Prescott City Community Development Department at a City Council study session on May 12, 2026, urging targeted hires, process changes and better use of existing permitting software to reduce permit delays and prepare for anticipated growth.
The assessment, delivered by Jonathan Ingram, Rebecca Hoskin and Susan Healey Keen, recommended six staffing and reorganization moves and a suite of process, technology and communication improvements. "We view this as an assessment and it's an opportunity to really look at the operation," Jonathan Ingram said, describing the team's approach of interviews, on-site observations and peer benchmarking.
Why it matters: consultants said vacancies in key leadership posts correlated with declines in on-time performance, and projected development agreements that include 10,000–20,000 housing units could sharply increase workload if steps are not taken to build capacity and cut repetitive review cycles.
Key recommendations and evidence
- Staffing and structure: The consultants recommended adding three FTEs (one dedicated water-resources position focused on permitting, one management analyst for performance reporting and one administrative operations support), plus organizational realignments so intake reports to building, engineering reports to the director, and code enforcement aligns with planning. The team reported that four of 26 CDD positions (15%) were vacant during the review period and that long vacancies in leadership roles coincided with worse processing times.
- Process changes and PACK improvements: The report urged formalizing thresholds that trigger water-resources escalation during the pre-application conference (PACK) so substantive water review occurs earlier, and that PACK comment letters accompany formal applications to preserve prior guidance. "If it's not complete at the counter it shouldn't enter the review queue," the consultants said, citing a 27.8% correction rate in 2025 for permits requiring extra rounds.
- Completeness checklists and applicant education: To cut repeat rounds, consultants recommended updating permit-specific submittal checklists, creating instructional videos for the top permit types and piloting financial disincentives for third-plus reviews only after education and checklist improvements are in place. Consultants cited examples used elsewhere (Phoenix, Prescott Valley) and said implementation should follow checklist and education improvements.
- Technology and data: The report found the city's CentralSquare permitting system generally adequate but in need of configuration fixes and workflow integration (notably for water resources). Recommendations include forming an internal technology user group, dedicating capacity (vendor or internal) to address CentralSquare issues and publishing on-time review metrics (targeting a 90% on-time goal) to build transparency and performance management.
Council and staff response
Council members pressed for evidence about fee impacts and asked whether CentralSquare can require checklist completion before submission; consultants and staff said gating digital submissions is a feasible technology fix but not currently configured. Community Development Director Chelsea Walton told council that a recent HR survey showed roughly 53% of city employees live outside city limits, a factor affecting recruitment and retention.
Public stakeholders in favor
Industry speakers praised the report and endorsed some recommendations. "I am a firm believer that extra round reviews should be charged," public commenter Sandy Griffith said, while several frequent applicants and builders urged quicker, clearer guidance for first-time applicants.
Next steps
Consultants will finalize the report and work with staff to develop a multi-year implementation plan and host a June–July workshop to sequence recommendations, estimate effort and assign responsibilities. The consultants noted the recommended positions were not included in FY27 budget submittals; council direction would be required to add them earlier.
The consultants said their final deliverable will include a progress tracker and staff will be asked to report on implementation milestones to the city manager and council.
