Potential Office of Planning and Grants Split Up for Discussion Tonight

Many developers in Missoula have complained about the long waits for approvals, permits and project applications. Increased waiting times make projects cost more and delays the time that they can be profitable.  Last January, a study commonly called the Taylor Report was published. The report made many suggestions to the city of Missoula as to how it could speed up the application process and create a "one-stop" customer service model for licensing and processing.

Unlike most of the major cities in the Northwest, the Missoula City Office of Planning and grants is intimately tied to the Missoula County Office of Planning and Grants. The Taylor report's first suggested step towards the "one-stop" model was to break-up the inter-local agreement that tied the city and county offices together. The plan originally met with some objections from the city council which wanted a "working group" to discuss the process. The Missoula Planning board will meet tonight to discuss these issues.