December 2022

At the Lake County Board meeting on Tuesday, November 22, Christine McCarthy, Environmental Services Director, presented an annual report. In the report she noted the sharply increasing activity for everything connected to land use permits from 2016 to 2021, with the numbers dropping off a bit in 2022. The reason for the spike and recent dip was not immediately clear but, McCarthy speculated, may have to do with a combination of backed up contractors, the supply chain issues, and the increased interest rate. Permits have been divided up and most fees have increased in the last few decades, driving up county revenue to match the hours county staff are putting in to work with with permit holders. McCarthy commented that for potential commercial use properties, there is a lot of collaboration with the county, with subsequent time and investment spent, without any guarantee that the buildings will eventually be built, hence the higher permit cost.