Is it possible the City of Tucson and Pima County are working together to cut red tape and make doing business with them easier and faster? That’s what they’re saying. Carmine DeBonis, director of development services for Pima County, and Jessie Sanders, deputy director of development services for the City of Tucson, speaking to members of the Metropolitan Pima Alliance, said they are using their downtime during the current slowdown to re-evaluate and streamline their processes.

The city, which this month was named the least business-friendly government entity in Arizona in a survey of 3,000 members of the Arizona Small Business Association, is "analyzing the whole development plan process," Sanders said.

He said his department is "going through a rebirth" that started with "friends urging us to look at ourselves" and how the city does business.

"We started with a list of items they’d like us to work on," Sanders said, adding that his department has "found out a lot about ourselves."

As an example, Sanders said, his department discovered city processes involve "a whole lot of silos and policies administered sporadically, or not at all."

Sanders said his department has been working with the Tucson Chamber of Commerce to learn more about changes that may be beneficial in city processes and procedures.

At the county, when DeBonis learned the city was discussing the development review process with the chamber, he wanted to join in hopes the area’s governments could "work cross-functionally to deliver a more common service."

City officials have committed to reviewing aspects of the land use code beyond recent certificate of occupancy issues posing problems for businesses that are starting or expanding. The ultimate goal is working with the community to revise the entire code. 

The city has asked the Metropolitan Pima Alliance to bring commercial stakeholders to the table to work with city officials to address elements of the land use code that relate to the certificate of occupancy process, such as signage, parking, and site visibility triangles.  MPA interim director Michael Guymon said the organization is optimistic that participants can start the process of addressing those provisions by the time the disclosure agreement ordinance goes into effect. 

DeBonis said his department is involved in several "service enhancement projects" he believes will streamline development processes and reduce the time required to get permits and approvals.

One is "single-day permitting," with a goal of getting 80 percent of permits reviewed and approved in one day by reorganizing his staff so there are fewer handoffs and less duplication of effort. Whatever isn’t processed in one day, DeBonis said, should be completed in no more than five days. He said an analysis of his department’s operations discovered "a lot of redundant entry into the computer system" and a lot of redundant research.

"We’re not close to approaching that 80 percent yet, but we’re using this gap during the slowdown to make changes," he said.

To improve the county’s permitting process, DeBonis said, his department is ratcheting down on the number of review meetings required to obtain a permit. One way they’re doing that is by cross-training staff to prevent backlogs. In addition, rather than sending permits for restaurants to the health department, the county development services department is now providing those reviews themselves.

DeBonis said the county also is looking to streamline its development plan review process by "redefining triggers" that require a development plan. For example, a new project beginning on a vacant site would have the same requirements as now, but other projects that aren’t starting from scratch may involve a more streamlined review.

"Now there seems to be a desire to reach out — both in the private and public sectors — and find common ground," Klipp said.

Contact reporter Ed Egger at eegger@azbiz.com or (520) 295-4238.