Health dept. working to expedite permits
The Macon County Health Department is continuing to address the permit application backlog in the environmental health program.
The department has implemented overtime to reduce the permit application backlog, according to Public Health Director Kathy McGaha’s report at the Macon County Board of Commissioners meeting on May 14. McGaha said those three to four people have handled over 200 permits in the last month and, with a couple of days of help from another county, they have reduced the multiple-week backlog, which got up to seven or eight weeks at times.
“We are right at one week, just over that possibly,” McGaha told the commissioners. “I can’t ask for any better news than that.”
McGaha said her staff can’t maintain that pace and that County Manger Derek Roland will address the staffing in the upcoming budget by adding two positions. McGaha said they visited Jackson County and their setup to come up with ideas.
The commissioners were complimentary of McGaha’s efforts, especially Paul Higdon, who said the backlog has infuriated him for 20 years.
Higdon asked about scanning documents to put the permitting process online. McGaha said staff continues to work on it and Roland added that the 2024-25 budget will include purchasing an online portal software system for environmental health.
Roland said building inspections are up 13% this year, despite real estate prices being down from their pandemic highs. Macon County Erosion Control Officer Joe Allen said they’re sending staff to Catawba County to view how the software works. McGaha said the permit portal will go online in phases.
To close the environmental health discussion, Higdon said he’ll recommend following Jackson County’s environmental health fee schedule, which he said will lower the overall fee intake, but will make sense. Roland recommended maybe keeping the fees the same for one year to map out the effects better, to which Higdon noted the county has over $40 million in fund balance in the bank and that he’s leaving the board in December.