City of Bonita Springs Gets Better Deal with Zoning and Development Service Provider

The City Council of Bonita Springs voted 7-0 Wednesday for the approval of a renegotiated contract with CH2M Hill, the private contractor which provides the city with the  community development staff to cover services such as zoning and development order reviews.

Before the renegotiation, the city pays the company $1.34 million annually for its services and also allows them to keep what remains of the building permit fees collected on behalf of the city after netting out operating expenses.

Under the new contract, the city will pay CH2M Hill $1.1 million annually for the building permits and retain all fees collected. Said City Manager Carl Schwing of the changes in the arrangement with the corporation , “The city was not in control. CH2M Hill was. They would pay for their expenses and then keep the balance surplus. We are going to pay them a fixed amount of money for their services and we are going to get all of the fees, so the city has control of the surplus.”

The new contract also removed the firm’s authority to increase fees by a minimum of 3 percent.

The third change in the arrangement, according to Schwing, was the establishment of performance measures. Schwing said he wants people looking to build or renovate homes and businesses to experience good customer service. For instance, the service provider’s Community Development staff must not make anyone wait more than 15 minutes and must return phone calls and emails within four business hours excluding times when they are in meetings or on vacation or sick time. They must issue use permits and answer zoning questions within four business days. They are to review permit applications for residential within four business days, for commercial projects less than 25,000 square feet within five business days and for commercial projects more than 25,000 square feet within 10 business days. They must have comments ready for land use amendment and major development order applications within 20 business days and for zoning applications within 21 calendar days.

Finally, The renegotiated  measures also call for the firm to maximize the number of online permits available, take over services to minimize clients’ travel to Fort Myers, and partner with the city’s Fire-Rescue and Bonita Springs Utilities to streamline permitting processes.