STAFF REPORT
Meeting Date:
August 4, 2026
CONSENT
9 SUBJECT: PLANNING DIVISION UPDATE AND WORKLOAD SUMMARY THROUGH JULY 27, 2026
RECOMMENDATION: It is recommended that the City Council:
1. Receive and File the Planning Division Update and Workload Summary, which covers the period from August 2024 through July 27, 2026.
SUMMARY OF THE MATTER
This report provides the twelfth update on the Planning Division's workload and performance metrics in response to City Council direction to monitor progress toward improving permit processing efficiency and eliminating the planning application backlog. The data reflects continued operational improvements, with average Zoning Plan Check (ZPC) queue times reduced to 13 days and nearly all reviews completed within the Division's 30-day performance goal. Additionally, the average time from initial ZPC submittal to Building Permit issuance for projects requiring discretionary approvals has decreased from 17 months to approximately 12.2 months.
This item has no fiscal impact and is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) because it is not a project pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15378(b).
DISCUSSION
At its October 8, 2024, meeting, the City Council directed staff to provide regular updates on the Planning Division's workload and progress toward eliminating the planning application backlog while achieving a Zoning Plan Check (ZPC) turnaround time of 30 calendar days or less. The first update was presented on November 12, 2024. This report represents the twelfth progress update.
The Planning Division has now transitioned from primarily focusing on backlog reduction to sustaining predictable review timelines while continuing to improve overall project delivery. Staff continues to monitor performance using the following operational benchmarks:
A 30-calendar-day or less turnaround for each Zoning Plan Check (ZPC) review cycle. An average 14-calendar-day turnaround for each Building Plan Check review cycle. A maximum of 45 calendar days from ZPC clearance to a project's first Design Review hearing.
PLANNING DIVISION UPDATE AND WORKLOAD SUMMARY THROUGH JULY 27, 2026 August 4, 2026
Current Data Insights. As of July 27, 2026, our numbers look like this:
As of July 27, 2026, Planning Division performance continues to demonstrate sustained improvements in processing efficiency. Average ZPC queue time has declined from 57 days in August 2024 to 13 days, even as pending ZPC applications increased from 192 to 244. These results demonstrate that the Division has maintained timely review performance despite a consistently active workload.
The "days pending" metric measures only the amount of time an application remains in a planner's queue awaiting review and should not be interpreted as the total duration of the review cycle. Nearly all ZPC reviews continue to be completed and returned to applicants within the City's 30-day performance objective.
The limited number of exceptions each month are generally attributable to unforeseen staffing absences, workload balancing, or other unique project circumstances Zoning Plan Check Workload.
As illustrated in the chart below, the Planning Division's overall workload has remained relatively stable over the past year, with routine month-to-month fluctuations. During the most recent three-month period, pending ZPC applications declined from 273 to 244, while the rolling 12-month average remained at 266 applications.
Based on current trends, staff has not observed a significant shift in overall application activity. However, there has been a modest softening in the average number of projects under review over the past several months. While it is too early to determine whether this represents the beginning of a broader trend or simply normal seasonal variation, staff will continue to monitor application volumes closely in future updates.
PLANNING DIVISION UPDATE AND WORKLOAD SUMMARY THROUGH JULY 27, 2026 August 4, 2026
ZPC Application to Building Permit Issuance.
In early 2025, staff introduced a new performance metric to evaluate the overall development review process by tracking the time between the initial Zoning Plan Check and Building Permit issuance. This measure provides a broader assessment of project delivery than individual review cycle metrics alone.
The initial baseline analysis, based on July 2025 data, found that projects requiring discretionary entitlements averaged 524 days (17 months) from initial ZPC review to Building Permit issuance.
During the current reporting period (April through July 2026), 15 previously entitled projects were issued building permits. Those projects averaged 371 days (12.2 months) from initial ZPC review to Building Permit issuance, representing a continued improvement from the previous report's average of 466 days.
Although project-specific factors such as applicant responsiveness, design revisions, and permit complexity continue to influence individual timelines, the overall trend reflects meaningful gains in the efficiency of the City's entitlement and permitting process. Staff will continue monitoring this metric as additional projects progress from entitlement through permit issuance.
PLANNING DIVISION UPDATE AND WORKLOAD SUMMARY THROUGH JULY 27, 2026 August 4, 2026
ADVANCE PLANNING
While previous workload updates have primarily focused on current planning metrics, staff believes it is also important to recognize the significant amount of advanced planning work occurring concurrently.
Many of these initiatives require substantial staff resources, extensive public outreach, interdepartmental coordination, and policy development, yet are not reflected in the Planning Division's day-to-day workload statistics.
Over the past several months, staff has continued to advance a number of significant policy initiatives, including the joint City Council/Heritage Committee study session regarding historic property and land use practices, continued work on the Irvine Bowl sound policy, and the Downtown Specific Plan Phase 2 update, which recently resulted in additional City Council policy direction.
In addition, the City's General Plan Update formally commenced approximately six weeks ago. Staff has established an internal working group that is meeting regularly to develop the project scope and Request for Proposals, which is anticipated to be presented to the City Council on September 22, 2026.
At its most recent meeting, the City Council also adopted the Design Review Efficiency Ordinance following an extensive effort involving staff analysis, stakeholder outreach, and close coordination with the City Attorney's Office. Staff anticipates that these process improvements will continue to enhance the efficiency and predictability of the City's development review process. Also before the City Council as part of the August 4, 2026, agenda is the Objective Design Standards project, representing another major longrange planning initiative currently underway.
Taken together, these efforts illustrate that, while the Planning Division has maintained timely review of current planning applications, it has also continued to advance multiple complex policy initiatives PLANNING DIVISION UPDATE AND WORKLOAD SUMMARY THROUGH JULY 27, 2026 August 4, 2026
simultaneously. Although these advanced planning efforts are not captured in the workload metrics presented in this report, they represent a significant portion of the Division's overall workload and ongoing commitment to improving the City's planning framework and development review process.
FINANCIAL ANALYSIS
The recommended action has no financial impact to the budget.
ALIGNMENT WITH CITY COUNCIL GOALS AND PRIORITIES
This report supports the City Council’s goal of improving efficiency and transparency in development review processes. In response to Council direction from the October 8, 2024 City Council Meeting, staff has provided regular updates on Planning Division workload metrics to monitor progress toward eliminating the planning application backlog and maintaining a 30-day (or less) turnaround time. In addition, the City Council requested quarterly updates on the timeline from the ZPC start date to Building Permit issuance date to monitor overall processing time for projects with entitlements. The data presented demonstrates measurable improvements in operational efficiency for development review.
ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS
The recommended action has no environmental impact.
ATTACHMENTS
None
Submitted By: Matthew Schneider Approved: .David A Kiff Matthew Schneider, Director of
Community Development
Dave Kiff, City Manager
Report Prepared By: Coordinated With:
Erin Fabian, Administrative Analyst Matthew Schneider, Director of Community Development