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Birchwood Village council directs mayor, attorney to update planner contract after extensive billing debate
Summary
After a long discussion about the planner retainer, hourly billing and pass-through charges for project-specific work, the council asked the mayor and city attorney to revise the planner contract to a hybrid model and consider an hourly rate in the $125–$135 range. The motion carried.
Councilors spent an extended portion of the meeting addressing the city planner’s contract and how the city bills for planning work, including permit review, appeals and frequent resident inquiries.
Planner Ben outlined his workload and said he had expected a year‑in review of the retainer. "My request was to go back to that original contra contract amount that I had proposed because I found the hours that I put in was pretty accurate," Ben said. Council members and staff described a pattern of frequent, time‑consuming inquiries and appeals that are currently covered under the retainer and discussed how to ensure the arrangement is fair to both residents and taxpayers.
The council debated several approaches: keep the current retainer, switch entirely to hourly billing, or adopt a hybrid model — a modest monthly retainer to cover routine short contacts plus pass‑through billing for project‑specific work and appeals. Under the hybrid approach discussed, residents would receive an initial complimentary intake (suggested at about 30 minutes) before hourly billing would begin; appeals and complex project work would be billed to applicants through an escrow mechanism. Ben suggested an hourly rate in the $125–$135 range; council members proposed that the city could add a modest administrative markup when billing applicants to recover overhead.
The council voted to have Mayor Margaret Ford work with Ben and city attorney Alan Cude to update the contract terms and fee schedule consistent with that hybrid concept, including clarifying how pass‑through billing and escrows would function.
Why it matters: The planner provides technical guidance that affects land-use decisions and building permits. The contract structure affects resident access to planning advice, municipal operating budgets and how the city recoups costs for appeals and complex reviews.
Next steps: The mayor and city attorney will draft revised contract language and a proposed fee/escrow schedule for council review at a future meeting.
