There’s not a lot of good economic news out there these days, but data from Maricopa County Planning and Development Department shows some encouraging signs for the nation’s fastest-growing county.  Building permit submissions are up substantially year-over-year, with a greater percentage of these being completed online.  

Article originally posted here.

Planning and Development reports 1,371 permit applications were submitted in April 2020 compared to 1,141 in April 2019, a 20 percent increase. Permit submission numbers have grown every month so far in 2020.   

“We know the economic impact of this crisis is far from over and we are seeing impacts across all industries,” said Maricopa County Board of Supervisors Chairman Clint Hickman.  “What this data represents to me, though, is a reason to be hopeful.  People continue to build in Maricopa County.  They want to invest in their future here, and the Planning and Development Department is allowing them to do that with greater ease even during times of social distancing.”   

Planning and Development received 4,897 permit applications in the first four months of 2020.  The department issued 3,596 building permits, including 720 new house permits, during that same time period. The total value of the issued permits was $294,967,958.  In the first four months of 2020, 65 percent of building permit applications were submitted online, a trend that began even before the full impact of COVID-19 shutdowns was felt.   

“Improvements to the online permitting experience made prior to the pandemic have enabled more individuals and businesses to apply for permits on their schedule, at their convenience.  In fact, we saw the percentage of permits submitted online jump from 49 percent in January to 77 percent in March,” said Jen Pokorski, Planning and Development Director.   

Over the past several months, Planning and Development, with support of the Board of Supervisors and county leadership, has prioritized additional online options. Last fall’s redesign of the county website included an easier-to-understand online permit process.