PORT TOWNSEND — Jefferson County’s Department of Community Development faces budget scrutiny moving into 2026.
Chelsea Pronovost, the department’s administrative services manager and interim director, presented a preliminary budget to the Board of County Commissioners on Monday.
The department — responsible for building permits, code enforcement, planning and fire safety programs — is made up of 24 employees, or 21.39 full-time-equivalent (FTE) positions, Pronovost said.
The department’s revenue, projected at $1.6 million, comes largely from building and land-use permits, she said. Other revenue sources include grant funds and small reimbursements for fire plan reviews.
With expenditures projected at $2.89 million, the department is looking to the county’s general fund to close the gap.
The move would be in keeping with historical trends, and the department’s request is reduced from 2025, Pronovost said.
“The key takeaway is we’re only able to present a balanced budget with a starting fund balance and a general funds transfer,” she said.
Pronovost said the department has reduced its general fund request from $1.26 million in 2025 to just over $1 million for 2026.
Judy Shepherd, the county’s finance director, noted that the proposed budget leaves the department with no fund balance at the end of 2026.
“This is a tough one. The model that’s been created at DCD is not sustainable,” Shepherd said. “We’re not bringing revenue in. It’s dependent on the general fund.”
Shepherd acknowledged the value of the department’s work and said that, while she doesn’t yet have a solution, conversations on how the department could cut costs need to take place.
Pronovost noted that several positions are currently vacant, including director, building official, fire marshal, plans examiner and assistant planner.
County Administrator Josh Peters, former DCD director, questioned whether or not using the funds from the vacant position could help.
“We kind of need all of those,” county commissioner Greg Brotherton said.
Brotherton questioned whether the Office of the Fire Marshal needed to continue budgeting for 1.5 FTEs, given that Building Official and Fire Marshal Phil Cecere is leaving the position in the near future.
The office was added to DCD in 2022 as part of an effort to modernize the county’s fire code and create an internal fire inspection program. Officials had hoped that a voluntary commercial inspection program would largely fund the office, but participation has been low.
The office of the fire marshal sent 280 letters to businesses, Pronovost said.
“Only eight took us up on the inspections,” she added.
Deputy Fire Marshal Brian Tracer said the department has nonetheless handled a large volume of work this year.
“It’s been a crazy year — 31 fire investigations, more than I’ve ever done in my career, including one fatality,” Tracer said. “It’s been a little disappointing, a little heartbreaking, knowing the community and what’s going on.”
Pronovost said DCD has been finding ways to operate more efficiently and with lower costs.
She said her favorite DCD vehicle was supposed to be retired a year or two ago, but it has stayed active. The department kept an older vehicle in its fleet for $180 a month instead of replacing it with one that would cost about $500 monthly.
The department also saves time and staff resources through small process improvements.
In 2023, DCD launched a digital permitting system and a short-term rental program, leading to dramatic reductions in processing times.
“From January 2023 to now, there’s been a 56 percent decrease in residential building permit times, 64 percent in commercial and 75 percent in site development review,” Pronovost said.
Permitting times may increase as the department seeks to find a new plans examiner, she added.
Commissioners Heidi Eisenhour and Brotherton credited the department for improving turnaround times and reducing public complaints about delays.
“I don’t get those calls anymore,” Eisenhour said. “I get people complimenting me on the progress we’ve made. We can’t go back.”
Even as commissioners praised the department’s performance, they agreed that difficult budget choices lie ahead.
“We’re going to get whiplash if we keep saying, ‘Let’s try this, let’s try this, let’s try this,’” Eisenhour said. “We’ve got to figure out what is core to the work of DCD and keep that stable.”
Pronovost said the department’s goal is to continue delivering key services while tightening spending where possible.
“The hope is always to lower (our general fund request),” she said. “It’ll never be zero if we want to continue to fund these programs.”
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Reporter Elijah Sussman can be reached at elijah.sussman@peninsuladailynews.com.
