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Community development seeks to bring inspections in-house as contractor costs rise
Summary
Community development staff told council that third'party building-inspector costs are rising (to about $115/hr) and proposed shifting some professional-services funds into salaries to hire an in-house inspector and building official to reduce long-term contractor expense, while noting hiring challenges.
Community development staff reviewed FY27 requests and highlighted rising costs for third-party building inspection and building-official services, which the presentation put at roughly $115 an hour for contracted inspectors. Staff explained the plan to transfer funds from professional services to salaries to hire an in-house building inspector and building official to reduce contractor reliance and restore more consistent local service.
Staff acknowledged a difficult hiring market: recruitment for an in-house inspector had produced only a small number of applicants over many months and the certification pathway can take 18 months to two years. The presenter said one advantage the county could offer is more limited ancillary duties compared with larger jurisdictions, which may attract semi-retired inspectors seeking focused review work.
Council members asked how the transition would affect the overall budget and whether savings on contractor costs would offset salaries; staff said some contractor funds would be repurposed for salaries if in-house hires are successful and that service levels had already been reduced because contractors are only available for limited days per week.
