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Thought Leadership for Transforming Community Development

Private Provider

Permit Expediter vs. Private Provider: What’s the Difference?

By The Private Provider Team | Oct 26, 2026 | 4 min. read

A permit sits in review two weeks past when the schedule called for it. One person on the team suggests hiring a permit expediter. Another says to loo...

Operations, Building Department

What Is Building Department Outsourcing in 2026

By The Building Department Team | 6 min. read

Your building department is short two inspectors, permit applications are stacking up, and the next budget cycle is months away. Meanwhile, residents ...

Permitting, Planning, Building Department, RVI, Remote Video Inspections RVI

3 Ways To Relieve Common Building Department Bottlenecks

By The Building Department Team | 3 min. read

A stack of applications. A voicemail box full of status questions. A follow-up inspection nobody has time to drive to. By the end of the week, the fee...

Planning, Community Development

3 Signs Your Downtown Rules May Be Holding Back New Businesses

By The Planning and Zoning Team | 3 min. read

Empty storefronts are hard to ignore. They can make a downtown feel quieter and leave people wondering what is holding it back.

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Industry Resources

Operations, Building Department, Staffing

Building Department Staffing Self‑Assessment

By Juliana Ficheli Hoffman | 1 min. read

Get a clear picture of your building department's staffing resilience Answer this nine-question quiz about your staffing, capacity, and emergency read...

Permitting, Building Department, Community Development

Outsourced Building Department Models for Small Cities

By Juliana Ficheli Hoffman | 7 min. read

Running a building department with limited staff and budget is one of the toughest challenges small municipalities face. When a single inspector handl...

Operations, Process Improvement

Private Provider Services [One-Page Overview]

By The Private Provider Team | 1 min. read

A simple way to keep projects moving when staff capacity is stretched High permit volumes, limited staffing, and growing inspection demands can slow y...

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