Columbia County building and zoning staff announced a new, district-based email notification process for zoning applications during the Sept. 18 meeting. Melissa Garber, assistant building and zoning director, described a workflow in which staff will review submitted zoning applications, determine eligibility and the request type, identify the commissioner district(s) affected and then send a targeted notification email to the applicable commissioner(s).

Garber said the notice will include the application type, applicant name and contact information and invitation to contact the building and zoning department for follow-up. "If it's in your district and your district only, then you will receive the notification," she said, adding the system reduces the number of irrelevant notices a commissioner receives. She acknowledged edge cases where parcels border multiple districts and said staff will make best efforts not to miss notifications in such situations.

Garber said she worked with Patrick in IT to implement the solution and that the process was rolled out quickly after a staff proposal. Commissioners in the audience were told to contact the building and zoning department for additional information or questions; no formal vote was required for the operational change.

The county indicated the new notification email will allow commissioners to be alerted earlier about zoning activity in their districts without receiving every application across the county. Implementation tasks will be managed by the building and zoning and IT departments.