Resolution to Amend the Land Resources and Environment 2024 Budget for the Purchase of Permitting & Licensing Community Development Software from Opengov

The Land Resources and Environment Department’s Planning and Zoning Service area uses a system to track all the various permits and processes that are required to implement state statutes and county ordinances through a program known as PZ Systems.  Prior to 2001, there was an Access Database for each individual program or functional area.  To consolidate the programs, the department worked with MIS to bring all this data together and to implement file sharing with the AS400 Tax System.  Septic pumpers were also brought into the program through a lotus notes-based program that was located on the County website, in which pumpers would log-in to record parcel information for systems that had been pumped in accordance with state statute requirements. 

Even this shared programming had limitations; and as a result, PZ Systems was born in 2016.  PZ Systems is a program that was designed utilizing an outside consultant.  The same consultant that designed the system was also brought in each time there were issues or updates needed to the program.  As with any program, the system is now unsupported and is unable to conduct the additional functions that are necessary, for instance, a public portal where individuals can apply online for permits or inspections directly into the system.  

Over the course of almost a year, the Department has reviewed five (5) different software providers and programs to find the software that would be most beneficial to the Department and the public we serve.  Opengov was selected as the best option for the Department’s needs moving forward.