CITY OF HUNTINGTON BEACH
CITY COUNCIL MEETING – COUNCIL MEMBER ITEMS REPORT
TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council
FROM: Casey McKeon, Council Member
DATE: April 4, 2023
SUBJECT: One Stop Shop Update
ISSUE STATEMENT
On October 4, 2022, Councilmember Erik Peterson brought a Council Member Item (i.e., H-Item) to City Council, which passed, directing the "City Manager to evaluate best practices and implement a customer-centric, inter-departmental one stop shop system. If deemed appropriate by the City Manager, the development of a position to lead the one stop shop with demonstrated experience establishing, leading and managing an effective inter-departmental one-stop shop program could be considered. " That City Council action also came with direction to the City Manager that "At a minimum, the City Council should receive updates in open session from the City Manager every three months beginning January 2023 until the one stop shop is fully implemented or City Council directs otherwise."
For background, in his October 2022 initiative, Councilmember Peterson explained that the City of Huntington Beach has been continuously experiencing investment in buildings and properties both in the residential and commercial markets. All have to work through the City to get a variety of approvals and permits required by Federal, State and/or local laws and policies. The goal of the City team should be to minimize the difficulty in navigating these regulations and policies for those who want to inve st in buildings and properties within Huntington Beach. As economic development is one of the City Council’s strategic priorities, the City should strive to provide first class customer service and the most efficient, business-friendly experiences possible.
A next step in the evolution of the City’s efforts to continuously innovate and improve, is to build upon the City’s Permit Center by developing and implementing a customer -centric, all-on-one- floor, inter-departmental One Stop Shop system for development projects, and other functions such as business licenses, etc. It should include all practices, process improvements, procedures, fees, data collection, staffing considerations, and an in-person facility that facilitates investment in Huntington Beach with increased consistency, certainty, and efficiency for all. Fortunately, the City has a 24/7 online customer service portal for the community’s permitting needs; it is anticipated that ongoing improvements will be made to the online services to p arallel the in - person services developed as part of the One Stop Shop effort.
To provide the foundation for developing the One Stop Shop, the City issued a request for proposals (RFP) in November 2022 to implement a Customer Service Excellence effort for the City of Huntington Beach. From that RFP process, in January 2023, Jennifer Coyle from North Star Consulting was selected to provide extensive assessments of the City’s opportunities for service improvements, and Dennis Snow from Snow & Associates was selected to deliver presentations to all staff in early May. A series of training sessions will follow over the remainder of the year to approximately 250 members of the OneHB Team. Between May through July 2023, the City Team will be arranging tours of existing One Stop Shops in the region to understand the range of considerations for Huntington Beach within the context of the Customer Service Excellence effort and the objectives of the City Council.
It is my desire to continue with this focused effort on serving the community in this way.
RECOMMENDATION
Direct the City Manager to continue providing quarterly updates to City Council and to return to City Council with a proposed scope of work and timeline (i.e. schedule) showing when the One Stop Shop will be implemented at City Hall in order to cut the red tape and roll out the red carpet for businesses and improve customer service to our residents and visitors . Please also provide any items needed from the City Council in order to streamline this endeavor for maximum success.
STRATEGIC PLAN GOAL
Community Engagement , Economic Development & Housing , Infrastructure & Parks, Fiscal Sustainability
Attachment:
1. October 4, 2022 Council Member Item - Establishing a One Stop Shop Development Services Center
CITY OF HUNTINGTON BEACH
CITY COUNCIL MEETING – COUNCIL MEMBER ITEM REPORT
TO: The Honorable Mayor and City Council
FROM: Erik Peterson, City Council Member
DATE: October 4, 2022
SUBJECT: Establishing a One-Stop Development Services Center
The City of Huntington Beach is continuously experiencing investment in buildings and properties in both in the residential and commercial markets. All have to work through the City to get a variety of approvals and permits required by Federal, State and/or local laws and policies.
The goal of the City team should be to minimize the difficulty in navigating these regulations and policies for those who want to invest in buildings and properties within Huntington Beach.
As economic development is one of the City Council’s strategic priorities, the City should strive to provide first class customer service and the most efficient, business-friendly experiences possible. A next step in the evolution of the City’s efforts to continuously innovate and improve, is to build upon the City’s permit center by developing and implementing a customer- centric, all-on-one-floor inter-departmental one-stop-shop system for private development projects. It should include all practices, procedures, fees, data collection, and an in-person facility that facilitates investment in Huntington Beach with increased consistency, certainty, and efficiency for all.
There is no fiscal impact with this request; however, it is anticipated that components of this request will have fiscal impacts that require city council consideration at a later time.
RECOMMENDED ACTION
Request the City Manager to evaluate best practices and implement a customer-centric, inter- departmental one stop shop system as described above. If deemed appropriate by the City Manager, the development of a position to lead the one stop shop with demonstrated experience establishing, leading and managing an effective inter-departmental one stop shop program could be considered.
At a minimum, the City Council should receive updates in open session from the City Manager every three months beginning January 2023 until the one stop shop is fully implemented or City Council directs otherwise.