Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Planning And Permits topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Algoma council directs staff to pursue ePlan review contract, seeks legal review
Summary
Council asked staff to pursue an ePlan plan-review contract to shorten commercial plan review times and approved sending the proposed agreement to the city attorney for review before returning to council in February.
Algoma staff proposed using the ePlan platform to perform plan reviews for larger commercial projects, a change that staff said can reduce plan-review turnaround from months to roughly three to four weeks.
Staff explained ePlan duplicates the state plan-review function for commercial permits and can speed permit processing for developers; staff recommended the city attorney review any contract language and asked council for direction. "They do it in about a 3 to 4 week turnaround," staff said when describing ePlan’s service compared with the 3–6 month state timeline. Council members from neighboring communities and a local developer reported positive experiences with ePlan.
Council voted to have the administrator and staff forward the proposed ePlan contract to the city attorney for review and to return with a contract for council consideration in February. Staff will also verify whether use of ePlan would be optional for applicants or mandatory if the city enters an agreement.
Next steps: city attorney to review contract terms and staff to return to council with the agreement and recommended fee schedule or adjustments.
