Placer Community Development anticipates growth, requests additional positions

The Placer County Board of Supervisors on Oct. 11 received an update from the Community Development Resource Agency (CDRA) on development and needed staffing. According to CDRA Director David Kwong, Placer has 47 residential subdivisions that are being worked on. Kwong's presentation noted 13 subdivisions are building homes now, 15 are building infrastructure and 19 will be initiating building infrastructure improvements. "Typically on the annual basis, what the county sees is about four to 10 subdivisions a year. We have 47 at this point we're working on and more has actually been received in the last couple of weeks, including today, that have not been accounted for in these numbers …," Kwong said, noting there are roughly 4,400 lots being created with the active subdivisions. According to Kwong's presentation, current projects include Placer Vineyards and Bickford Ranch in western Placer, as well as Kings Beach redevelopment and Alpine Village Apartments in the Tahoe Basin. Kwong also shared the department's workload, including permits, customer phone calls, transactions and in-person counter visits, has increased in recent fiscal years. According to the staff report, a 15-percent increase is projected for fiscal year 2022-23. To right size the CDRA department, Kwong said 25 additional positions are needed to meet ongoing demands. According to the staff report, the positions include: Nine for the Planning Services division to support a general plan update, the Code Compliance Program and increased pre-development and entitlement applications. Three for the Engineering and Surveying division to support increased workload due to plan submittals, including additional small-lot tentative maps for 2,000 units CDRA expects to receive. The Building Services division needs two positions to support a projected 5-percent increase in workload. The Administration and Community Development divisions need an additional 11 positions. According to Kwong, the General Fund impact for the 25 positions is projected at $3.4 million per year. Kwong said the department currently has 12-13 percent vacancy and the requested positions will be added as growth occurs. The board received three comments, one of which North State Building Association Legislative Director Jeff Short asked the board to "do everything you can to ensure your staff is prepared for the growth that's coming." No action was taken due to it being an informational overview.