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Home My WebLink About2006-11-03 Dividing a department (Hometown News)Dividing a department Village g plans � to separate public works, community development BY SARAH STOVER Stair writer NORTH PALM BEACH — What was known as the Department of Public Ser- vices in the Village of North Palm Beach might soon become the Department of N. Public Works and Commu- nity Development. The change was an item added to the budget for the new fiscal year, which began Oct. 1. The ordinance, which would divide one depart- ment into two passed on first reading, but was tabled on second reading at the Oct. 26 Village Coun- cil meeting. An ordinance to put the two departments into effect will be on the agen- da for the next council meeting, which is Nov. 9. "Creating separate public works and community development departments will enhance our Village focus, experience and expertise requirements of the work responsibilities, which vary widely between public works and commu- nity development," said village manager Mark Bates. The Department of Pub- lic Works would handle maintenance tasks, such as repairing and taking care of buildings, lights, plumbing systems and - storm water drainage. Public works would also manage garbage pickup and disposal. The Department of Com- a munity Development would be responsible for planning, zoning, building permits, inspections and code compliance. The director of community development will also serve as the housing offi- cial. "The Village conducts its own construction permit inspections using in-house staff. These building inspectors work under the guidance and authority of a building official, which is the same as our communi- ty development director," said Mr. Bates. The separation would also physically separate the departments since community development would relocate to the Vil- lage Hall. "The Village community development (depart- ment) generates a healthy volume of customer visits each day, for both business licensing and construction permit applications," Mr. Bates said. "Our previous customer service location offered limited parking and an extremely small customer service area that was not reasonably meet- ing our resident and cus- tomer needs." While the separation will enable the departments to better serve customers, it will not create any job opportuni- ties for residents. The departments are fully staffed with existing employees, said Mr. Bates. If the ordinance passes at the next council meeting, it will take effect immediately.