Can Santa Fe Cut Permit Review Time From 4 Weeks to 2?

Michael J. Garcia became Santa Fe's 44th mayor on January 1, 2026, succeeding two-term mayor Alan Webber after winning with nearly 63% of the vote. Garcia was born and raised in Santa Fe and holds a bachelor's degree in political science and a master's in public administration from the University of New Mexico. He served two terms as the District 2 city councilor beginning in 2019 before running for mayor, and his public service career traces back to an earlier role with AmeriCorps VISTA, which he left in 2025 to avoid a conflict of interest ahead of taking office. In his inauguration speech, Garcia named infrastructure, affordable housing and homelessness as priorities for his term, and his administration has kept a close eye on a permitting system that has run largely on paper for years, an aging process his office has identified as one of the more visible friction points between city government and the residents, builders and architects who depend on it.

The Planning and Land Use Department is now preparing to launch an electronic building permit review system this fall. For years, builders and architects submitting plans in Santa Fe have relied on paper documents that must physically move between offices and departments for review. Under the current setup, each application moves from one station to the next, allowing separate city divisions to assess different parts of a project. Reviewers who work outside City Hall have had to receive and return those paper plans by hand, adding time to a process that already strains developers working on tight budgets.

Land Use Director Heather Lamboy has led the effort to replace that system with software built on the OpenGov platform. The department targets an October rollout. Lamboy said the finance team helped design the system so that every fee entering the platform remains fully auditable and transparent to city staff and the public. That requirement took additional time to build correctly, but officials consider it necessary given how much money moves through the permitting process each year.

Once launched, the platform will combine several city functions into a single set of digital modules, covering business licensing, code enforcement, permitting, and development review. Bringing these functions together is intended to enable staff and external reviewers to work simultaneously within the same module. Lamboy described this shared access as a structural change in how reviews get done.

The efficiency gains city officials are hoping for are substantial. Under the current paper-based process, a permit review takes an average of four weeks to complete. With the new system in place, the department hopes to cut that average to two weeks, and potentially less over time as staff becomes more familiar with the platform.

Before the system reaches the general public, the city plans to run a testing phase through a panel called the Land Use Working Group. Members of that group, which includes local building professionals, will test the software and provide feedback during August and September. After that testing period and the October launch, the city intends to hold public information sessions to walk residents and industry professionals through how the new system works.

Tom Spray, executive director of the Santa Fe chapter of the American Institute of Architects, has been a vocal supporter of the shift. He has pointed to the vast quantities of paper the current system requires and said the software should meaningfully improve efficiency for everyone involved, from architects and builders to property owners dealing with the city.

The stakes extend beyond convenience. City Affordable Housing Director Faviola Chavez has noted that every day a project is under review costs developers money, and those costs are eventually passed along to residents. Framed that way, faster permitting becomes part of a larger conversation about housing affordability in Santa Fe.

The City Council funded the new software last year as part of a modernization push, and its rollout this fall will be a major milestone in Mayor Garcia’s first year in office. If the system delivers the reduced review times that officials expect, it will reshape how residents, builders, and city staff experience one of local government's most routine yet consequential functions.

This webinar previews e.Republic’s 2027 state, local, and education event portfolio, including more than 100 returning events and new additions. It will cover where SLED market activity is building, how government and education priorities are shaping technology buying, and where vendors should focus their event strategy before RFPs emerge. The session will also examine how sponsors can use events to build executive relationships, improve market visibility, and support demand generation. Details →

The summit brings together Maine state and local government technology leaders to focus on AI governance, cybersecurity, modernization, digital identity, data sharing, and resident services. Sessions include managing shadow and agentic AI, consolidating applications and infrastructure under budget constraints, expanding digital accessibility, strengthening statewide cyber resilience, and modernizing IAM with MFA and SSO. A hands-on AI workshop will test public-sector use cases and prompting techniques, while later sessions cover quantum readiness, cryptographic inventories, and Maine’s evolving digital-services platform. Details →

This paper argues that districts should evaluate technology vendors on long-term value. It recommends assessing partners across five areas: K-12 expertise, multi-year planning, service and support, cybersecurity capabilities, and measurable accountability. Stronger partnerships can also shift routine work, such as device management, procurement, and infrastructure planning, away from stretched district IT teams while supporting one-to-one access, training, and change management. The goal is to tie technology spending more closely to instructional outcomes, security requirements, and long-term district infrastructure plans. Read →

Officials from California, Oregon, Washington, British Columbia, and Baja California have agreed to build the BC2BC Zero Emissions Vehicle Corridor, a 1,381-mile route along Interstate 5 meant to let electric trucks travel the length of the West Coast. In California, heavy-duty trucks make up only 6% of vehicles on the road yet account for about 35% of harmful nitrogen oxide emissions and 25% of vehicle greenhouse gas emissions. The agreement sets shared standards for charging infrastructure across five jurisdictions in three countries, aiming to have Class 8 electric trucks operating along the full corridor by 2030.

Pennsylvania is replacing fragmented oversight of its 52 area agencies on aging with the Comprehensive Aging Performance Evaluation, or CAPE, a statewide system for evaluating performance more consistently. CAPE gives the Department of Aging better access to comparable performance data, makes it easier to identify agencies that need additional support, and strengthens accountability across organizations serving older adults and people with disabilities.

Was this email forwarded to you? Subscribe here to get Fractional Leader delivered to your inbox every Tuesday & Thursday.