DSAC Minutes 08/06/2025MINUTES OF THE COLLIER COUNTY
DEVELOPMENT SERVICES ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETING
Naples, Florida
August 6, 2025
LET IT BE REMEMBERED, the Collier County Development Services Advisory Committee
and Collier County, having conducted business herein, met on this date at 3:00 PM in
REGULAR SESSION at the Collier County Growth Management Community Department
Building, Conference Room #609/610, 2800 N. Horseshoe Dr., Naples, Florida, 34102 with the
following members present:
Chairman: William J. Varian
Vice Chairman: Blair Foley
James Boughton
Clay Brooker
Jeffrey Curl
Laura Spurgeon DeJohn
John English
Marco Espinar
Norm Gentry
Nicholas Kouloheras
Mark McLean
Chris Mitchell
Robert Mulhere
Hannah Roberts—AHAC Non -Voting
Jeremy Sterk
Mario Valle
The following County staff were in attendance:
Mike Bosi —Director, Zoning Division, GMCD
Christopher Mason —Director, Community Planning &Resiliency Division, GMCD (Not in
Attendance)
Jaime Cook — Director, Development Review Division, GMCD
Michael Stark — Director, Operations & Regulatory Management Division, GMCD
John McCormick — Director, Building Review & Permitting Division, GMCD
Thomas Iandimarino — Director, Code Enforcement, GMCD
Claudia Vargas — Project Manager I, Engineering & Project Management, PUD
Cormac Giblin — Director, Housing Policy & Economic Development Division, GMCD
Jay Ahmed — Director, Transportation Management Services, Transportation Engineering
Division
James French — Department Head, GMCD (Not in Attendance)
Heather Cartwright-Yilmaz — Management Analyst/Staff Liaison, GMCD
Captain Michael Cruz — Collier County Fire Review
Captain Bryan Horbal —North Collier Fire Review
Any person who decides to appeal a decision of This Board you will need a record of the
proceedings pertaining thereto, and therefore may need to ensure that a verbatim record of the
proceedings is made, which record includes the testimony and evidence upon which the appeal
is to be based, neither Collier County nor This Board shall be responsible for providing this
record.
1. CALL TO ORDER— Chairman
Chairman Varian
Development Service Advisory Committee,
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2. APPROVAL OF AGENDA
Blair Foley motioned to approve the agenda as presented.
Mario Valle seconded.
Motion passed unanimously.
3. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
a. DSAC-LDR Subcommittee Meeting: 05.20.2025
Clay Brooker motioned to approve the minutes with corrections (replace "Mr. Brooker"
with correct names and "sees" with "wants" on page 5).
Robert Mulhere seconded.
Motion passed unanimously.
b. DSAC Meeting: 06.04.2025
Nicholas Kouloheras motioned to approve the minutes.
Norm Gentry seconded.
Motion passed unanimously.
c. DSAC-IFR Subcommittee Meeting: 06.19.2025
Mario Valle motioned to approve the minutes.
Chris Mitchell seconded.
Motion passed unanimously.
d. DSAC-ROW Subcommittee Meeting: 07.23.2025
Motion passed unanimously.
4. PUBLIC SPEAKERS
None
5. STAFF ANNOUNCEMENTS
a. Zoning Division — [Mike Bosi, Director]
• Staffing Shortages: Down two staff members, with efforts to fill positions ongoing.
Land Use Petitions: 27 petitions scheduled for September and October Board of
County Commissioners (BCC) meetings, including Costco ASW PDI (September 18
and October 14). Some petitions may be delayed due to agenda constraints.
• Planning Commission: 25 petitions between August and October, following a
summer hiatus. Fall meetings expected to be intensive.
Legislation: County must adopt a certified recovery residents reasonable
accommodation ordinance by January 1, 2026. A draft is being prepared for DSAC
review in September, with a 60-day decision -making process for applications.
Robert Mumere: Clarified Costco ASW PDI dates (September 18 for market study,
October 14 for full hearing).
b. Community Planning &Resiliency Division — [Christopher Mason, Director]
• No updates provided (Mason absent).
c. Housing Policy &Economic Development — [Cormac Giblin, Director]
Affordable Housing: Board approved 640 units. LDC amendments for housing plan
flexibility rescheduled to September 28 due to cancellation of September 12 BCC
meeting.
Economic Development: Contract executed with Phelan Family Brands for Texas
Tony's at North Collier Regional Park. Invitations to negotiate for concessionaires at
Barefoot Beach and Tigertail in progress.
d. Development Review Division — [Jaime Cook, Director]
Plat Approvals: Effective July 1, 2025, subdivision plats can be administratively
approved, signed by Cook, eliminating BCC review. Construction maintenance
agreements and bonds still required for pre -recording permits.
e. Operations & Regulatory Management Division — [Michael Stark, Director]
Permit Applications: July saw 4,338 applications (24 Hurricane Ian, 39 Hurricane
Milton).
Zoning Front Desk: Resolved 1,012 survey conditions, processed 28 short-term
vacation rentals, hosted 33 pre -application meetings, and welcomed 1,035 customers
at the business center and 128 at satellite offices.
• Call Volume: 7,791 calls answered, up significantly. IT team analyzing call drivers
to improve website navigation and reduce volume.
Staffing: 623.5 department -wide positions, 59 in hiring pipeline, many due to
promotions. Recruitment event on May 28 targeted reviewers/inspectors, with plans
for broader events.
Fee Study: Progressing, with solutions to be presented at next DSAC meeting. Focus
on aligning fees with operational costs.
HR Challenges: Two dedicated HR staff (Stephanie Abreu, Sandra Delgado)
addressing bottlenecks in application processing. Previously, only 8 of 52 code
enforcement applications were forwarded due to cursory downtown HR reviews.
Now receiving all applications.
• Initiatives: Exploring pay raises, incentives (e.g., $5,000—$10,000 for certifications),
remote work, and internship programs. Partnerships with FGCU and Lorenzo Walker
for recruitment, including paid internships.
Chairman Varian: Expressed concern over high call volume, suggesting website
improvements. Criticized prolonged review times (e.g., structural reviews), staffing
shortages, and HR inefficiencies. Noted $500 early work authorizations as an additional
taxpayer cost due to delays.
Blair Foley: Highlighted competitive labor market and HR structural issues, questioning
reliance on downtown HR for specialized roles.
Robert Mulhere: Suggested a sit-down with HR to discuss incentives (e.g., sign -on
bonuses) and enterprise fund considerations.
Mario Valle: Emphasized frustration with lack of progress on staffing and review delays,
impacting business operations.
f. Building Review &Permitting Division — [John McCormick, Director]
Staffing Crisis: Structural plan review team at 50% capacity after losing another
reviewer. Overtime authorized, but shortages drive delays. No PEs or architects
remain (previously had four PEs and one architect).
• Fee Study: Critical for funding competitive wages. Current rates unchanged for 10
years, leading to reserve depletion.
• Review Process: Batch review system causes delays as plans move between trades.
Exploring continuous flow model and Al for intake checklists to improve efficiency.
Pay Disparity: Regulatory staff earn 30% less than general fund staff (e.g., facilities
PMs). Equity pay rules limit hiring at competitive rates.
Training: Supports internship and mentoring programs but stresses need for
competitive wages to attract/retain talent. Last reviewer left for a $20,000 higher
salary elsewhere.
Chairman Varian: Criticized inconsistent reviews (e.g., missed items leading to
additional submittals) and requested trade -specific review time data.
Mario Valle: Noted non -compliant competitors bypassing permits due to delays,
harming compliant businesses.
Blair Foley: Suggested professionalizing staff through training and certifications,
questioning current training scope.
g. Collier County Fire Review —[Michael Cruz, Captain]
No report.
h. North Collier Fire Review — [Bryan Horbal, Captain]
• Plan Reviews: 200 additional reviews this month, totaling 820 permits. Two-day
turnaround maintained.
• Inspections: 1,400 new construction inspections in May. Nine projects on TCO
awaiting CO paperwork.
Staffing: Three new hires planned to address upcoming retirements. Existing
building inspections up to date.
i. Code Enforcement Division — [Thomas Iandimarino, Director]
• Hosting FACE fundamentals class in July at Heritage Bay for 35 staff (I 1 from
Collier), saving $8,000—$12,000 in travel costs.
j. Public Utilities Department — [Claudia Vargas]
No updates.
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k. Transportation Management Services — [Jay Ahmed, Director]
• Access Management: Presented to BCC on July 8.
FDOT Projects: Public hearing for I-75 PD&E (Golden Gate Parkway to Corkscrew
Road) and DDI at I-75/Immokalee (August 14).
• Golden Gate Parkway: Congestion study public meeting on August 21.
• Tiger Complete Street: 20 miles of sidewalks completed.
6. NEW BUSINESS
None
7. OLD BUSINESS
None
8. COMMITTEE MEMBER COMMENTS
• Chairman Varian: Urged faster permit processing to avoid economic impacts (e.g.,
delayed Publix, EMS stations). Criticized CAPTCHA on City View portal for signed -in
users.
Mario Valle: Highlighted competitive disadvantage for compliant businesses due to
permit delays.
Blair Foley: Suggested HR overhaul and targeted recruitment (e.g., headhunters) for
specialized roles.
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There being no further business for the good of the County, the meeting was adjourned at
4:41 p.m.
5
COLLIER COUNTY
DEVELOPMENT SERVICES ADVISORY COMMITTEE
William Varian, Chairman
These minutes were approved b e Committee/Chairman on
(check one) as submitted or as amended