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Planning director asks for added staff as flood recovery workload strains team
Summary
The planning director told commissioners the department is at capacity after flood-related work and regular duties; the director proposed funding a full‑time planner using planning fee revenue and cited an expected large subdivision application that could generate significant one‑time revenue.
The county planning director described sustained workload pressure since a December flood and warned the department was "max capacity" and that "the workload's not sustainable at all with current staffing levels." The director said missed statutory deadlines and chronic backlogs create operational risk, frustrate applicants and staff, and increase the need for either contractors or an in‑house hire.
To address the workload, the director proposed using planning-generated revenue to add a full-time planner. The department reported it has already exceeded projected revenue for the year and anticipates a large subdivision submittal (roughly 230 lots) that could yield about $115,000 in fees; combining that and current overperformance would, the director argued, cover an initial year of added staff. Commissioners asked for the revenue worksheets and said they would weigh the temporary hire versus continued contractor use when finalizing the budget.
