Increase in development results in more city planning staff

A combination of higher than expected first-half revenue and what one city official called a "tsunami" of city planning projects has led to the Menifee City Council's approval to hire six additional full-time equivalent positions to fill previously budgeted but unfilled jobs.

The hiring of four new staff members in the City Planning Department and two others in administrative and accounting positions was made possible by a one-time savings in salary of $4.1 million in the first half of the current fiscal year, said Wendy Preece, acting City finance director, at Wednesday night's City Council meeting. That savings was due to budgeted staff positions that were not filled during the six months from July through December 2017, she said.

That, along with an increase of almost $3 million in fees paid to the City by developers, gave Menifee $7.2 million more than expected in the first half of the fiscal year. And as city officials said during a mid-year budget review, while Menifee's building boom has brought in additional funds, it has also stretched city staff thin in their efforts to process and approve permits and projects.

"We need help in the Planning Department, so I'm happy to see we're able to fill those positions to get projects out of City Hall and onto our streets," said City Council member Lesa Sobek.

In reference to the hundreds of projects currently in the planning process, Mayor Neil Winter said, "To me, that drives the need for more FTEs."

And using a term she borrowed from City Manager Armando Villa, Preece said during her presentation Wednesday night that "in the past year or so, there has been a tsunami of entitlement permits issued."

While some residents continue to complain on social media about increasing development in Menifee, others express frustration over the time it is taking to move projects from the drawing board to brick and mortar. Most notable is the Krikorian Theater project in Menifee Town Center, but numerous other plans for shops, restaurants and homes have faced delays because of the sheer number of them compared to city staff, officials say.

Staff's recommendation was to put $4.8 million of the $7.2 million revenue increase into the budget reserve fund and use the remaining $2.4 million of the increase to augment services. The revised budget is approaching $50 million.

It's important to note, however, that revenue collected through the Measure DD 1 percent sales tax increase -- estimated to be $8 million or more by the end of the fiscal year -- is a separate budget category and does not go toward salaries of employees at City Hall. Measure DD funds are set aside for public safety and infrastructure. An accounting of those funds will be reported in an upcoming Menifee 24/7 article.

"As you see, we are enjoying a very good economic situation, which is driven by the housing market," Villa said. "You'll see a great deal of construction taking place this year. The plan is to be able to meet the demands that developers are putting on City staff."