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Planning director details zoning, housing and comp-plan work; proposes code-enforcement hire
Summary
Planning director Trish Reynolds outlined staffing (including a grant-funded housing planner), recent achievements (zoning backlog eliminated, online applications), a proposed code-enforcement officer and work on regional resilience planning funded by nearly $2M in grants.
Trish Reynolds, director of planning and development, reviewed department functions and staffing and highlighted recent accomplishments: a new short-term rental registration system, elimination of a 12-month backlog in zoning-board applications, and awards including a state technical assistant grant funding a housing planner.
Reynolds said the department proposes adding a code-enforcement officer to strengthen compliance (zoning and short-term rental enforcement) and described a CLG grant working with the Newport Restoration Foundation to address lead issues in historic properties. She said regional resilience planning has secured a nearly $2,000,000 NOA grant to increase capacity islandwide and that the Aquidneck Island Regional Hazard Mitigation Plan is awaiting approval from FEMA.
Councilors commended the reduced backlog and asked about hiring timing for a vacant clerk and whether the planning team will integrate the "Newport for All Ages" resolution work into the comp-plan update; Reynolds said an RFQ for comp-plan consultants had strong responses and a recommendation would come to council in the coming weeks.
