| Erie Occasions-Information
The town of Erie’s code enforcement officers will quickly obtain a $200,000 increase from state authorities.
Kathy Wyrosdick, town’s director of planning and neighborhood assets, confirmed that town of Erie’s software for a Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development grant – aimed toward streamlining operations and enhancing effectivity for town workers who monitor blighted properties and examine code violations, amongst different duties – has been accepted.
The state funding, in addition to $20,000 in metropolis funds that may be a required 10% match for the grant, can be used to each buy new laptop gear for code enforcement operations and to rent a marketing consultant to deal with a complete know-how evaluation targeted on town’s code enforcement workplace.
That workplace enforces housing and constructing codes for the roughly 38,000 buildings inside metropolis limits.
The Erie Times-News reported in November that metropolis officers had been pursuing the grant.
“We’re very a lot dedicated to utilizing this $220,000, which incorporates the grant and town match, to assist code enforcement officers do their jobs higher and supply the next degree of service to the group,” Wyrosdick mentioned.
“I don’t need folks pondering that is the top of the transformation of code enforcement although or that this solves every part,” Wyrosdick mentioned. “We’ve got quite a lot of concepts to construct capability in code enforcement and property upkeep, and that is one piece of it.”
The improve plan has the help of Mayor Joe Schember and Erie Metropolis Council.
Wyrosdick beforehand defined that the cash will assist code enforcement as a result of the workplace’s workers presently use a number of totally different computerized techniques that aren’t built-in.
Metropolis officers need to develop a streamlined course of which permits code enforcement officers to trace and entry details about blighted properties, permits, violation notices, demolitions and different related information, particularly within the discipline.
The upgrades additionally align with suggestions from Public Monetary Administration Inc., the Philadelphia-based consulting agency that helped town develop a long-range plan to stabilize its funds as a part of the state’s Early Intervention Program for financially struggling cities.
In a report delivered to city officials in February, PFM really useful town prioritize know-how upgrades for its 5 full-time code enforcement staff.
“The Metropolis presently doesn’t have a strong efficiency monitoring system, partly as a result of software program limitations. The present software program doesn’t maintain all historic data, can’t generate studies, and doesn’t permit the Metropolis to trace employees time in a manner that facilitates Neighborhood Improvement Block Grant (CDBG) reimbursement,” PFM’s report states.
Wyrosdick mentioned metropolis officers will now transfer ahead with requesting proposals from consultants who would each assess the division’s know-how wants and suggest gear.
“We hope to have that RFP out the primary week of February, and we’d be trying to vet candidates and rent somebody someday in mid-March,” Wyrosdick mentioned.
Sooner or later, metropolis officers will search for comparable state grant funding for know-how assessments/gear upgrades in different metropolis departments, Wyrosdick mentioned.
Contact Kevin Flowers at kflowers@timesnews.com. Observe him on Twitter at @ETNflowers.
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