Planning director urges full-time planner to handle post-flood workload, proposes using planning fees to pay for position

Lincoln County’s planning director told commissioners on May 26 that the department’s workload—intensified by a recent multi-year flood recovery effort—has reached a level that justifies adding a full-time planner rather than relying on contractors.

"Before December 11th we were already max capacity with our workload," the planning director said, describing missed statutory deadlines, delayed public responses, and growing operational risk since the flooding. The director proposed using planning-generated revenue to fund the hire and described a near-term revenue opportunity: an anticipated preliminary filing for a subdivision of about 230 lots that could generate roughly $115,000 in fees at current rates.

Why it matters: staff said daily operational backlogs are harming applicants and staff capacity and that adding a planner would be cheaper and more reliable than continuing to purchase contractor time. The director presented revenue figures showing planning revenues already surpassing projections this year and argued that the additional position could be structured as temporary (one to two years) if commissioners prefer a limited-term approach.

Board discussion: commissioners asked for further revenue detail and clarification on whether the request would replace any existing positions or contractors; the director said the request represented adding positions to bridge the current gap and that existing contract costs could be reduced. Commissioners said the request would be examined as part of the remainder of the budget process.

Next steps: no formal hiring decision was made; commissioners asked staff to factor the request into the final budget and to return with any clarifying financial projections.