Philadelphia, Albuquerque, and Douglas County, CO, are each acknowledged as progressive digital communities achieving innovation acclaim and economic growth through their modern approach to digital governance services.
Despite their diverse scope of innovations, a thorough assessment of these respective initiatives reveals common factors providing a clear roadmap to emulate for those agencies similarly invested in driving revenue growth through web responsive governance.
Chief among these:
A commitment to eliminate agency silos to empower true data accessibility & transparency.
Adoption of intelligent automation to streamline workflows for internal & external stakeholders.
A clear focus to deliver citizen services consistent with the highest customer service standards.
Given the vital role that a robust Permitting & Licensing system plays in each of these success stories in making data accessible, streamlining business processes, delivering citizen services, and empowering economic growth, let’s conclude our study with a brief summary of the core technologies integral to these innovation empowering platforms:
ePlanning
An electronic planning workflow, ePlans transforms the planning & approval process from a traditionally paper intensive workflow into a digitally collaborative and transparent process. In linking together all the information involved in large development projects; planners, agencies, and citizens alike can access and act upon all information quickly and easily, facilitating streamlined workflows for all involved:
For Developers & Planners, the ability to submit plans and permit applications, make payments or schedule inspections via a citizen web portal, and receive updates in real-time on their device of choice means…
Less time spent waiting in line.
More accurate plan submissions with less errors and delays.
Faster turnarounds on plan & permit approvals facilitating improved scheduling and builder efficiency.
Better management of time and resources with enhanced project tracking leading to fewer reviews and faster approvals.
For Citizens, the accessibility of a web-based citizen portal means…
Convenient engagement in the community development process with timely opportunities to review project plans, provide input, and share feedback.
For Agencies, the creation of an exclusively digital and fully collaborative workflow means…
Faster approvals as a result of parallel review of planning documents across agencies, along with automated workflows triggering key deadlines & decision workflows.
Reduction in labor intensive tasks and an environmentally friendly elimination of paper throughout the planning and permitting processes.
The creation of more livable communities with automation guided inspection and enforcement of planning codes resulting in improved adherence to community plans.
Increased stimulus of economic growth and community development with both developers and agencies empowered to quickly progress development projects to fruition.
By integrating Open Data with GIS (Geographic Information Systems), end users both internal and external can accomplish a diverse array of tasks more quickly and efficiently:
Mapping zoning and planning data together equips developers to see what type of businesses can be located where, alongside available properties/parcels and pertinent development requirements. Think of it as ‘one stop shopping’ for effective development planning.
Open data tied to intelligent automation can facilitate a more complete picture of the citizen experience. For instance, citizens potentially impacted by a planning application can be automatically notified of pertinent activity in their neighborhood, while license or permit applicants with delinquent tax owing can be more easily flagged for revenue recapture through automated crosschecks.
Many jurisdictions choose to map all confirmed construction projects from approved permits right down to a deck extension or kitchen remodel! Providing this level of data availability reduces operational overheads and time spent responding to citizen enquiries and complaints.
GIS data is a massive boon to inspectors and code enforcement officers in the field. ‘Big data’ enabled mobile devices equip field workers to easily manage schedules, plan inspection routes, access information (for properties, licensees, pertinent codes & legislation, etc.), and upload inspection reports or code violations.
