Planning department staff told the fiscal court on May 2 that increased development activity requires additional capacity to handle current‑use planning and to pursue long‑range projects.

"In this last year, we've permitted over half a million square feet of new commercial space in this community," Holden, planning staff, said, outlining major commercial and residential projects and noting about 600 new residential units approved but not yet built this fiscal year. Holden and staff reported 93 hearings processed this year, with 70 of those before boards or the planning commission.

To address the workload, staff requested four full‑time positions: two planners, a junior engineer and a community development specialist. The junior engineer would provide redundancy for the only currently stamped engineer on staff; the community development specialist would lead community outreach, school and garden projects and longer‑range implementation tasks from the county’s new comprehensive plan.

Holden said the community development specialist position also would respond to public queries on topics such as HOAs and serve as a facilitator for community projects. The court asked for salary estimates and benefit costings for each requested position and scheduled follow‑up budget review with staff to refine the request.

No hires were approved May 2; staff will provide precise salary and benefit estimates to integrate into the FY2026 draft budget.