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Staff outlines development-review audit, promises deliverables in February–March
Summary
Astoria City staff told council that a development-review audit has identified incomplete applications and capacity gaps; four deliverables are due in February with a formal presentation to council expected in March.
Astoria City staff briefed the council on a development-review audit that aims to speed and standardize the city's land-use permitting process. Community Development Director John Roberts said the audit will produce four deliverables, including a current-state assessment, a site-plan review framework, a targeted audit of key development-code sections and comparative best practices from other jurisdictions, with materials due in early February and a formal presentation planned for March.
Roberts told council that a frequent cause of delay is incomplete submissions from applicants, citing examples such as missing contractor license numbers and plans without scale. "We're already overhauling many of our building applications," Roberts said, noting staff will pilot a site-plan review process to bring planning, building and engineering together earlier to reduce back-and-forth. Councilors pressed staff about intake procedures, and Roberts said staff will require pre-application meetings for significant projects, strengthen web guidance and be stricter on accepting incomplete packets.
