Process Improvement

Site addresses are a critical component of public safety because addresses aid emergency services in locating homes and businesses. Over time, different approaches to and inconsistent implementation of private road naming requirements in Lewis County have resulted in many unnamed private roads. This decreases public safety. The Board of County Commissioners adopted amendments to Lewis Couty Code to require that any land division that creates three or more lots must be access by a private road and that road must be named. In addition, if an existing unnamed road needs to be extended to access new lots, the entire road must be named. The changes went into effect on August 27, 2024.

Citizens of Lewis County can now complete a short online form to request an inspection for their building permit. Previously, customers were required to call in to make this request. Having an online form allows efficiency of time for both customers and employees, as well as providing accurate and complete information to the building inspectors.

The Planning Team has identified an inefficiency in the processing of permitting for new RV parks and campground. The process was changed from a Binding Site Plan to a Special Use Permit, which reduces time and cost to process permitting. Development standards were also clarified to make it easier for customers to understand the requirements. Staff will document how implementation of the new process and standards work during 2024 and discuss if any adjustments are needed.

Refined process to allow for the submittal / review of building plans electronically. Customers no longer need to come to the building to drop off building plans or mail in physical copies, saving time and money for the customer. No hard copy retained after permit issuance, saving time and money for the county.

Community Development’s Permit Center became a “one stop shop” for customers. This allowed customers to submit all Community Development, Public Works, and Environmental Health applications to the same place.

Weekly issued building permit reports were added to the Community Development website so customers can see how many building permits are being issued each week, as well as what type of building permits are being issued.

Daily inspections were added to the Community Development website so customers can see when their inspection is.

Implemented a three-step permitting process to streamline the permitting process. The Master Site Review (MSR) became the first step in the process to complete before an applicant submitted additional site preparation and development permits.

Updated permit applications and forms were added to the Community Development website. This made it easier for the public to find applications and forms and eliminated the need to drive to the Permit Center to pick up an application. In addition to updating the forms, the site was broken into three major sections: Get a Permit, Explore County Information, and Track Long-Range Planning Projects. Relevant information for the topic is provided under each of the headings. Upcoming meeting materials including agendas and handouts are included in the Calendar on the main page of the site.

Gave customers another option to pay permit fees and allowed them to call and pay fee over the phone, reducing the need for customers to drive to the Kresky Building.