Zucker Report Released Despite Staff Aprehension

Last year, Zucker Systems performed an analysis of the Planning and Development Review Department, and while they did find “many exemplary features” within the department, a quick glance makes it clear why the city was less than eager to release the findings without some revision. The report is available, in its entirety, here....

The report also includes input from customers, conducted via a survey. According to Zucker Systems, “The negative responses we received in this survey are the worst we have seen in our national studies including many Texas communities.”

According to the report, of the 20 questions posed about the Planning and Development Review Department, five received negative reviews more than 25 percent of the time, which indicates signs of concern. Thirteen of the questions exceeded 50 percent. In fact, 82 percent of respondents felt that the city’s development review and plan check processes were unnecessarily cumbersome or complex, and 81 percent of customers felt that if the processing of a project was delayed, it was not typically justifiable and could occur over minor issues.

read more: www.austinmonitor.com/stories/2015/03/zucker-report/#sthash.zWGJBRtc.dpuf