February 27, 2006

Technology being underused

City’s planning staff has a robust system

By Robert Plain
Ashland Daily Tidings

Assistant planner Derek Severson works in the Community Development Building on Winburn Way. Photos by Orville Hector | Ashland Daily Tidings

Existing and available technology is not being utilized that could help Ashland’s Community Development Department operate more efficiently, according to an organizational audit performed by Zucker Systems of San Diego.

Although the city paid approximately $75,000 for tracking software called Eden five years ago, the Zucker report says, “there is still tremendous resistance from staff to using the program.”

But according to Bill Molnar, the interim director of the planning department, planning staff is starting to get comfortable with what the software can do.

“What we are realizing is that while it was primarily set up for building review, it has the capacity to be helpful for planners as well,” Molnar said. “It can be a useful tool for data collection.”

He said he is familiar with it “to a degree” but added that the newer planners — Amy Anderson and Derek Severson — “are well versed in it.”

The Zucker report says Eden can track permit dates, plan submittals and reviews, public notices and planning commission hearing dates. It enables plans to be followed and tracked through the review process and can even generate e-mail alerts for staff so they are reminded when information must be completed by. The software can also be modified to perform other functions that staff finds necessary.

“All these features are tremendously helpful to staff, management and applicant/customers,” the Zucker report says. “Management needs to set a clear date by which all staff will be fully trained and capable of using the system. After that date, all communications, notices and permit tracking should be done through the system. Unfortunately, without setting a clear date, it could be another five years before the system is utilized.”

The report also says planners could make better use of geographic information system software.

Assistant City Attorney Mike Reeder’s boss, Mike Franell, is far more active in the planning process than ordinarily occurs.

“There is insufficient licenses available to planners, which means at times the system is not available to them,” the Zucker report says. “Ideally each planner should have access to the GIS data from their desktop computer.”

Molnar said the department sees “opportunities to take advantage of this software” but he is not certain that they will. He said it will be determined by how best to allocate the available resources.

City Councilor Kate Jackson, who was a driving force behind the audit, said she would like to see the city’s Information Technology Department aid planning staff in implementing some of this software into their responsibilities.

“We have eight people working on computers, and we’re getting a director,” she said of the IT department. “The computer experts can facilitate the planning staff. How you make use of technology is a constant process for any organization. We need to make sure we balance how much time planners should be doing record keeping and how much time they spend actually planning.”

The Zucker report also says the planning department could make better use of the city’s Web site by making planning action archives available similar to how the city council archives its information.

Staff writer Robert Plain can be reached at 482-3456 x 226 or bplain@dailytidings.com.