Local governments must collaborate across departments to effectively manage business license approvals; however, traditional workflows often hinder timely communication and lead to delays and frustrations for both agencies and applicants. Accela streamlines collaboration for license approvals, empowering agencies to work more efficiently and provide better service to businesses. Accela’s cloud-based licensing solutions address communication challenges by fostering multi-department coordination, enhancing transparency, and accelerating approval times.

Urban planning is a dynamic field with shifts in population, economic development, and technology. Today, one of the most impactful shifts we’re seeing is the move from traditional, static zoning maps to digital zoning solutions. As cities look to future-proof their development strategies, digital zoning maps are transformative tools that enhance accessibility, support sustainability, and enable smarter decision-making. In short, digital zoning maps are paving the way for a more agile and inclusive future in urban planning.

Environmental health departments face growing challenges: from tracking compliance to managing inspection data and staying adaptable to regulatory changes. Accela’s Environmental Health platform simplifies these processes by digitizing and automating workflows, freeing agencies from cumbersome paper-based tasks. With Accela, teams can conduct mobile inspections, accept online applications, and monitor real-time data for faster, more transparent service delivery.

Digital permitting continues to revolutionize municipal operations, enabling cities and towns to streamline processes, improve transparency, and enhance efficiency in community development. As more local governments embrace digital transformation, several trends continue to reshape how permits are requested, processed, and approved. Let’s examine 5 digital permitting trends that impact municipalities nationwide.

Local and state governments looking to enhance service delivery and operational efficiency require more than just streamlined processes—they need technology integrations that empower teams to work smarter and faster. The Accela Civic Platform offers a robust platform for permitting, licensing, and code enforcement. Accela also boasts powerful integration capabilities to manage documents, automate workflows, and improve collaboration across government services.

Managing license applications can be a frustrating and time-consuming process, but it doesn’t have to be. Accela Civic Platform’s real-time application tracking technology provides instant access to updates, so everyone has visibility into the progress. With greater transparency and faster processing, real-time tracking takes the guesswork out of licensing and ensures a smoother experience for businesses and agencies alike.

As urban populations rise and development accelerates, some municipalities are facing an unprecedented construction boom. Managing this surge in development can be a double-edged sword. While new projects stimulate economic growth, these projects also put immense pressure on local governments to efficiently process permits, conduct inspections, and manage regulatory compliance. Without modern tools, municipal agencies risk falling behind, which can lead to costly delays and frustrated developers.

The traditional building permitting process is time-consuming and requires multiple manual steps that can cause delays and push projects off schedule. The Accela’s Civic Application can simplify and automate permitting process steps—cutting turnaround times by as much as 50%.

Permit backlogs delay construction projects, frustrate developers, and slow community growth. Outdated, manual permitting processes create long wait times for approvals, hinder site inspections, and slow certificate issuance. Modernizing the permitting process can drastically reduce these inefficiencies and create positive impact for local economies.