Welcome to Community Development
The Mission of the Community Development Department
“Excellence in customer service by providing courteous, timely and professional service to the citizens of Polk County through innovation in administration of planning, building and environmental health regulations and policies in order to protect the health and safety of the citizens of the County.”
The Community Development Department is divided into the following three divisions and two programs.
The Planning Division is responsible for managing the Comprehensive Land Use Plan and administering the County’s zoning regulations and long range land use planning. The Planning Director is Austin McGuigan. He is assisted by Planning Manager Sidney Shorter, Senior Planner Eric Knudson, Senior Planner Hannah Bricker, Assistant Planner, Ricky Mesa, Office Specialist II Sarah Buhler and Community Development Office Manager Kayla Bizon.
- Land use permits – conditional uses, zone changes, variances, etc.
- Site development plan review
- Long range planning
- Flood plain administration (non-structural such as fill and removal)
- Hazard mitigation planning
- Nuisance complaint and code compliance investigation and enforcement
- Road naming and addressing
The Building Division is responsible for administering the building permit and inspection program in accordance with State building, electrical, plumbing, mechanical and manufactured dwelling setup codes. The Building Official is Joe Whitaker. Other Building Division staff includes Community Development Office Manager Kayla Bizon and Building Inspector II Casey Bradstreet.
- Building Permits – County (outside city limits) and Falls City only
- Manufactured Structure Permits – County (outside city limits) and Falls City only
- Electrical Permits – County, Falls City, City of Dallas, and City of Independence
- Plumbing Permits – County (outside city limits) and Falls City only
- Mechanical Permits – County (outside city limits) and Falls City only
- Prescriptive Solar Permits - County (outside city limits) and Falls City only
- Flood plain standards oversight for structures (County only)
The Environmental Health Division is responsible for the review and approval of permits for the installation of septic tanks and drain fields, licensing and inspecting restaurants, swimming pools and tourist facilities, monitoring drinking water systems for compliance with Safe Drinking Water Act, administering the solid waste collection franchise ordinance and coordinating recycling efforts, and conducting food handlers classes. The Environmental Health Supervisor/Sanitarian is Christina Tisdell. Click for information on Household Hazardous Waste Collection Events.
Food Handler Permits
Restaurant licensing and inspection
Temporary restaurant licensing and inspection
School food service inspection
Day care inspections (upon request only)
Public swimming pool and spa pool licensing and inspection
Motel and RV park licensing and inspection
Camp licensing and inspection
Safe drinking water monitoring and compliance
Solid waste administration (County garbage collector franchising)
Dead deer pickup on County roads
Recycling coordination
Household Hazardous Waste Collection Events
Animal bite investigation (rabies)
Ambulance service ordinance administration
Vector borne disease investigation (rats and mosquitoes)
Food, animal and waterborne disease investigation (concurrently with the Public Health Dept.)
The Code Compliance program is responsible for investigating complaints and obtaining compliance with the County’s regulations.
- Provides investigation of complaints and code violations for the three divisions listed above.
- Coordinates formal enforcement actions with law enforcement agencies, other regulatory agencies and County attorney.
The Economic Development program is responsible for coordinating economic development and infrastructure development activities throughout the County and administrating grant programs that support these kinds of activities.
Polk County’s video lottery receipts
Coordination of Federal grant programs ranking process
Rural Investment Fund
Regional Investment Fund
Other grant programs
Long range planning
Flood events in Polk County can lead to flooding which results in damage to homes and businesses.
We are currently receiving reports that some homes are experiencing flooding in their basements.
You are now able to purchase permits through the State of Oregon's online ePermitting website. For more information, please visit the Polk County ePermitting Information webpage.
Septic systems dispose of household sewage, or wastewater, generated from several sources, including sinks, toilet use, bathing, washing machines, and other cleaning activities.
For many years, Polk County and our communities have been seeking a long-term water supply to meet our growing water needs. We are excited to invest funding we secured from the American Rescue Plan Act in a Regional Water Supply Planning project to prepare a Polk County Regional Water Supply Plan. Our goal is to equitably improve water supply resilience and reliability throughout the County.
Through a facilitated, collaborative process, this planning work is evaluating feasibility of regional supply solutions to serve Polk County communities, including how a regional Willamette River water source can leverage ongoing water supply efforts.
Supporting Documents
Prescriptive Solar Application (226 KB) 