County planner warns of staffing gap, urges review of interlocal agreements ahead of HB927

The county planner told the Washington County planning body the office will monitor changes tied to HB927 and review interlocal agreements with municipalities to clarify development-review procedures.

"I don't even think that as the planner for the county that I can question it," the planner said, urging the commission to "keep your eyes and ears open" and noting the office has borrowed a template to update agreements. The planner said some interlocal agreements in the records are old and may have lapsed.

The planner announced that Jennifer is leaving for the county building department and that her last day is Friday; the planner said hiring a replacement will take several weeks and that day-to-day coverage could limit capacity. As a result, the planner said it may be difficult to hold the regular May meeting and proposed postponing to allow time for onboarding.

A committee member asked whether Jennifer’s move was voluntary; other members expressed concern about reduced support from county leadership. "Not only did they not give us help, they took help away," one committee member said, characterizing recent staffing and resource shifts as a constraint on the office’s work.

On procedure, the planner described recent permit activity: minor lot splits and a four-lot subdivision were handled with administrative review or sent to the development-review committee when needed. The planner said larger applications—"if anything comes in that's hundreds of lots"—would require more time and committee attention.

Before adjournment, a motion to adjourn was moved and seconded; the transcript records the motion being made and seconded but does not include a recorded roll-call tally.

The planning body left open the prospect of meeting in June if no urgent applications arrive and staff has time to onboard a new planner.