Permitting Improvement Project

Progress Report Council for Quality Growth

Luz Borrero, Deputy Chief Operating Office for Development

June 4, 2015

Overview

2

Increasing efficiency and customer service in permitting, organization chart p. 3-4

Data shows faster reviews, wait times, inspections, increased permit volume p. 5-12

Upholding SLA’s for Peer Reviewed projects p. 13

Expedited Commercial Reviews meeting target, feedback positive p. 14-15

Phase 3: Hansen 8.3 and ProjectDox Implementation p. 16

High Level Time-Line for Implementation, Avolve project plan p. 17-18

Fiscal Oversight Advisory Committee provides guidance p. 19

Business License Improvements: Challenges and Objectives p. 20-24

Permitting Improvements designed to increase

efficiency and enhance customer service

3

The Permitting Improvement Project was launched in 2013 in response to feedback from business and civic leaders stating that DeKalb’s permitting and business license operations were hindering growth.

The project plan was structured in three phases:

Phase 1: Short-Term improvements identified and implemented “low hanging fruit” changes; established Major Projects Team, upgraded Q-Matic and IVR systems and procured consulting support for in-depth business process analysis. May – September 2013

Phase 2: Retained Consulting firm to formulate business process changes and implementation plan. Developed and produced permit guides, streamlined processes, and implemented Peer Review Policy. October 2013 – December 2014

Phase 3: Software Overhaul initiated software overhaul with electronic plan review and document management system, in parallel to Hansen Phase 0 Assessment. Implementing facility changes. July 2015 – February 2017

Development services division: DeKalb’s

one-stop-shop

4

Director of Planning and Sustainability

Associate Director

Development Adminstrator

Business License

Occupational Taxes

Alcohol Licenses

Excise Taxes

Permit Management

Zoning Review Intake

Administrative

Building Plan Review

Water/Sewer Review

Fire Review

Building Review

Land Development

Arborist

Site Plan Review

Inspections

Trade Inspections

Plumbing Inspections

Electrical Inspections

Mechanical Inpsections

Building Inspections

Environmental Inspections

Development Inspections

Land Dev. Inspections

Watershed Inspections

Building permits issued are increasing

year to date

5

Year Permits issued through May

All Permits Commercial Residential

2012 1657 719 796

2013 1375 517 735

2014 1602 680 745

2015 2579 1378 1125

• New construction is 10% of the total

number of permits.

• Trade permits (electrical, HVAC, plumbing)

are not included.

0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

2012 2013 2014 2015

Permits Issued 2012- May 2015

Commercial Residential Other

Development Fund revenue has steadily

recovered since the economic downturn

6

0

500000

1000000

1500000

2000000

2500000

1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1

2012 2013 2014 2015

Quarterly Revenue 2012 - 1st Quarter

2015

Quarterly Revenue Quarterly Revenue Trendline

Data shows substantial progress toward improving

our permitting operations

7

Since this project began in May, 2013 we have substantially improved permitting operations by:

Consolidating fragmented areas (Land Development, Environmental Inspections, Fire

Review, Water/Sewer Review, and Business Licenses) into a single organizational structure to create a one-stop-shop

Adopting streamlined processes for minor permits (alterations and move-in as is)

Developing permit guides to assist customers through the entire process

Establishing a solution-oriented culture dedicated to customer service

Upgrading technology (Q-Matic & IVR Systems) to increase staff efficiency

Customer experience has been enhanced through reduced plan review times and faster inspections for all projects, and guaranteed service levels for Peer Reviewed projects.

The new culture emphasizes data gathering and data analysis to measure our successes and develop corrective measures where improvements are still needed.

The average time to review commercial plans has

decreased since the improvement project began in

July, 2013

8

0

5

10

15

20

25

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

Jun-1

3

Jul-13

Aug-

13

Sep-1

3

Oct

-13

Nov-

13

Dec-

13

Jan-1

4

Feb-1

4

Mar

-14

Apr-

14

May

-14

Jun-1

4

Jul-14

Aug-

14

Sep-1

4

Oct

-14

Nov-

14

Dec-

14

Jan-1

5

Feb-1

5

Mar

-15

Apr-

15

May

-15

Nu

mb

er

of

Revie

ws

Days to

Revie

w

Commercial Plan Review Times

Median Days

to Review

Number of

Reviews

Median Days

to Review

Trendline

Engineering and erosion control review times have

remained steady despite increased volume

9

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

Q2 2013 Q3 2013 Q4 2013 Q1 2014 Q2 2014 Q3 2014 Q4 2014 Q1 2015

Days

to R

evie

w

Nu

mb

er o

f

Revie

ws

Engineering and Erosion Control Review Times

2nd Quarter 2013 - 1st Quarter 2015

Median Time to Review Number of Reviews

Over 70% of customers are being served in less than

30 minutes, while the number of customers has

doubled since November, 2014

10 *Customer volumes peak January through April, as this is Business License Renewal season

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

3000

3500

4000

4500

5000

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Customer Wait Times

≤ 10 min 11 - 30 min 31 - 45 min > 45 min Total Customers

The Building inspections completed on scheduled day has improved

to 95%, while the number of inspections has remained steady

11

Year

Building

Inspections

through May

2012 4,764

2013 4,494

2014 3,852

2015 4,490

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

0

200

400

600

800

1000

1200

1400

To

tal B

uild

ing I

nsp

ecti

on

s

% N

ext D

ay

Building Inspections

Building Inspections Building % Next-Day

Trade Inspections completed on scheduled day have improved to

nearly 90%, while total inspections have rebounded to 2012

numbers through May

12

Year Trade Inspections

through May

2012 14,679

2013 13,398

2014 12,877

2015 14,638

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

3000

3500

4000

Jan-1

2

Mar

-12

May

-12

Jul-12

Sep-1

2

Nov-

12

Jan-1

3

Mar

-13

May

-13

Jul-13

Sep-1

3

Nov-

13

Jan-1

4

Mar

-14

May

-14

Jul-14

Sep-1

4

Nov-

14

Jan-1

5

Mar

-15

May

-15

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

% N

ext D

ay

To

tal T

rad

e I

nsp

ecti

on

s

Trade Inspections (Plumbing, Electrical, HVAC)

Inspections % Next-Day

Fire inspections completed on the scheduled day

have improved to 99%

13

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Jan-1

3

Feb-1

3

Mar

-13

Apr-

13

May

-13

Jun-1

3

Jul-13

Aug-

13

Sep-1

3

Oct

-13

Nov-

13

Dec-

13

Jan-1

4

Feb-1

4

Mar

-14

Apr-

14

May

-14

Jun-1

4

Jul-14

Aug-

14

Sep-1

4

Oct

-14

Nov-

14

Dec-

14

Jan-1

5

Feb-1

5

Mar

-15

Apr-

15

May

-15

Perc

en

t C

om

ple

ted

on

Sch

ed

ule

d D

ay

To

tal

Co

mp

lete

d

Same-Day Fire Inspections Completed, 2013-May 2015

Total Completed Percent Scheduled Day

Expedited Commercial Plan Reviews hitting

target of 10 days or less

14

1. Architectural and Engineering Firms become registered within

the county as Peer Reviewers.

2. A public database is maintained by the county of all registered

Peer Reviewers.

3. Applicants select a Peer Reviewer from the database to review

structural, life safety, fire systems and accessibility aspects of

plan before submitting plans to the County.

4. Once review is completed, the customer submits signed plans

to the County.

5. The County performs an expedited plan review. Plans that

submitted through the Expedited Commercial Plan Review

Program are guaranteed to be reviewed within 10 days.

6. The County’s review also covers zoning, building, fire and

watershed management requirements.

• 94% of Expedited Commercial Plan

Reviews have met their target of 10

days or less.

• Average performance time since the

beginning of the program is 8 days.

We are collecting customer’s feedback about the

changes and it has been largely positive

15

There are three primary ways we collect customer feedback: Permitting lobby electronic kiosk, drop box, and e-mail. Below are three examples of positive feedback we have recently received:

Patti W.

Frequent customer of DeKalb County’s permitting process.

Commends Angela Newborn, Sandra Weaver and Chuck Witherspoon for their exceptional customer service.

Through timely, routine follow-ups and an intricate knowledge of their duties, Patti’s deadlines were met and her multiple permits correctly prioritized to ensure efficiency.

Brian K.

Quick responses to e-mail and telephone inquires allowed expeditious completion of sewer connection permit application.

Thorough staff knowledge provided valuable insight.

Assistance streamlined planning and eliminated the need for multiple revisions.

Client of Brian K’s was extremely pleased.

Gerald O.

Initially had difficulty submitting plans and permit applications for townhouse .

Was directed to Madolyn Spann who was diligent in connecting Gerald to appropriate County employees throughout the process.

Recommends Ms. Spann as a credit to her department and DeKalb County.

Implementing Phase 3: Technology Overhaul

16

On January 13, 2015 the Board of Commissioners approved the upgrade to Hansen 8.3 and ProjectDox 8.3

This new technology will improve customer service and staff effectiveness

Hansen 8.3 will allow the customer to pay fees, renew business licenses and check the status of permits online.

Substantial manual data entry efforts for large subdivisions and apartment complexes will be automated.

Phase 0 Assessment begins in July to determine best approach for Hansen 8.3 implementation.

Upgrade to Hansen 8.3 begins in August, and will be underway until approximately February, 2017.

Digital submissions with ProjectDox increase staff efficiency while saving applicants time and money

Electronic plan routing eliminates the risk of lost plans and the effort involved in plan routing, and consolidating plan sets.

Electronic routing enables concurrent reviews the moment plans are submitted into the system.

For initial submittals and resubmittals of building permits, land development permits, and sketch plats, applicants will be able to submit

their plans through an online portal.

The first workflow development for ProjectDox will begin once the contract is finalized

Estimated 5-Year Cost for Hansen 8.3 and ProjectDox 8.3 - Software as a Service (SaaS)

Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4 Year 5 5-Year Total

Hansen 8.3 $638,089 $638,089 $638,089 $651,191 $664,947 $3,230,405

ProjectDox 8.3 $186,695.47 $186,695.47 $186,695.47 $186,695.47 $186,695.47 $933,477.35

Total $824,784.47 $824,784.47 $824,784.47 $837,886.47 $851,642.47 $4,163,882.35

High-level timeline for software overhaul

17

Hansen 8.3 and ProjectDox 8.3 - Implementation Timeline

2015 2016 2017

JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB

ProjectDox Assessment

ProjectDox 1st Sprint

ProjectDox 2nd Sprint

ProjectDox 3rd Sprint

ProjectDox Final

Configuration, Testing,

and Rollout

Hansen Phase 0

Assessment

Hansen 8.3 Upgrade

Hansen Testing and

Training

Avolve has proposed an aggressive implementation timeline that

will begin with an assessment and detailed work-plan

As part of the scope of work to implement ProjectDox 8.3, Avolve has provided a project plan that

includes four phases:

Phase 1: Planning and Assessment. The first step toward implementation will yield a detailed work-plan that

considers DeKalb’s specific system needs.

Phase 2: First Sprint. This phase will involve the development workflow and related templates will address

commercial and residential building permits, and will begin midway through the planning and assessment phase

Phase 3: Second Sprint. This phase will involve the development workflow and related templates will address Land

Development.

Phase 4:Third Sprint. This phase will involve the development of workflows and related templates will address

Planning and Zoning and Business License.

Phase 5: Final Configuration and Roll-out. This phase will include extensive testing, customer and staff feedback, and

training prior to roll-out.

ProjectDox Implementation 230 Days Total

Planning and Assessment 40 days

Sprint #1 Building Permits 70 days

Sprint #2 Land Development Permits 70 days

Sprint #3 Business License, Planning and Zoning 70 days

Final Configuration and Roll-out 40 Days

Development Services Fiscal Oversight Advisory

Committee will provide guidance

19

On January 13, 2015 the Board of

Commissioners approved legislation

establishing the Development Services

Fiscal Oversight Advisory Committee

The BOC approved all ten recommended

committee members on April 14, 2015

The Advisory Committee will meet

regularly to provide oversight and guidance

on the following:

Process Improvements

Policy Changes

Budget Priorities

Communications

The kickoff meeting will be held on June 18, 2015

Business Licensing improvements are being

undertaken to address systemic issues

20

Problem: Business & Alcohol License renewals are not being

processed in a timely fashion

Staffing & training deficiencies are leading to ineffective and inefficient operations

The Business & Alcohol License Unit faces issues with time & resource allocation

Challenges facing DeKalb County’s business licensing operations include: Insufficient resources at peak activity times for

applications and renewals

On the job training for new employees is not adequate to keep up with the volume of daily applicants

Not enough staff are adequately trained in processing alcohol license applications and renewals

Phone calls and e-mails are going unanswered or unreturned on the same day

Backlog prevents timely processing of mail-in renewals

New Business Licenses have increased

since 2013

21

Year Licenses issued

through May

2013 635

2014 935

2015 889

$-

$20,000

$40,000

$60,000

$80,000

$100,000

$120,000

$140,000

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

New Business Licenses

New Licenses Revenue

Business License renewals remain

highly seasonal

22

Year Licenses renewed

through May

2013 8,157

2014 8,257

2015 6,999

$-

$500,000

$1,000,000

$1,500,000

$2,000,000

$2,500,000

$3,000,000

$3,500,000

$4,000,000

$4,500,000

$5,000,000

$5,500,000

$6,000,000

$6,500,000

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

3000

3500

4000

4500

Business License Renewals

Renewals Revenue

Objectives for this process improvement involve

thorough understanding of process and problems

23

High-level objectives Define the problems through observation and data collection &

analysis

Map out business work flows

Make recommendations to improve customer service and create

efficiencies, including redesign of business processes

Implement designed processes

Where we are in the process The Business & Alcohol License Unit is currently under observation

and we are collecting data on processing times, workflows, and

employee tasks

With the collected data, business work flow process maps are being

constructed to pinpoint inefficiencies and find areas for improvement

Mapped Example of Alcohol License

Renewal Process

24

The process map below displays how the number of

interactions between the Business & Alcohol License staff and

applicants contribute to an inefficient process

25

Thank You!