Board approves conversion, reclassification work and classification review for community development staff

Mike Beharie, community development director, told the Kootenai County commissioners on April 2 that he had reviewed departmental structure since assuming the role and proposed changes to improve consistency and service delivery. He said the board should consider converting position 155-003 from a 35-hour week to a 40-hour week to align with county schedules; if approved, the change would take effect April 6, 2026.

Beharie said the fiscal impact for the remainder of FY2026 would be minimal and remain within budget, noting some funded vacancies elsewhere allow for the incremental cost. Craig Davidson emphasized the change would recover roughly 260 hours a year previously used to cover counter duties, yielding the equivalent of about 32 days of permit review capacity and supporting sustained permit-processing throughput.

The board voted to approve the conversion of position 155-003 to a 40-hour work week.

Beharie also asked the board to allow Community Development to work with HR to reclassify an administrative secretary to an administrative assistant because the role’s scope and complexity have changed; Brandy Falcon clarified the request only authorizes Community Development to work with HR and that any final reclassification would be decided in the FY2027 budget process. The board approved the request to coordinate with HR.

Separately, Beharie requested an initial classification evaluation of plans examiner positions to establish a tiered plans examiner 1–3 structure to support career progression and retention. He said a possible promotion from plans examiner 1 to 2 at a 50% increase could be requested in FY2027. Craig Davidson noted the county already has a highly qualified master code professional on staff and framed the proposal as retention-focused, not an increase in headcount. The board authorized Community Development to proceed with HR on the classification evaluation.

When the office-work-schedule item (item 5) required discussing specific individuals, the board entered executive session under Idaho Code §74-206(1)(b) and (1)(d). After exiting executive session the board moved, seconded and approved the office work schedule for Community Development.

What’s next: Community Development will work with HR and include any reclassification or promotion requests as part of its FY2027 budget submission; approved operational changes take immediate or near-term effect as noted.