91视频

Portland’s Bureau of Development Services has City Council‘s approval to pursue a $4.5 million, five-year contract with a software vendor to upgrade the city’s permit-tracking software.

The contract would extend the city’s relationship with CSDC Inc., of Austin, Texas. BDS has used the company’s AMANDA software since at least 2009. Other city bureaus also use AMANDA, according to a draft ordinance presented to the City Council.

The existing contract will expire on Aug. 31. The new contract would be in effect Sept. 1, 2018 to Aug. 31, 2023. The contract has a five-year option.

AMANDA is part of the Portland Online Permitting System, or POPS. The system will transition BDS from working with paper plans to electronic plans. BDS Director Rebecca Esau has said the project is her top priority.

鈥淚t is horribly inefficient to work with paper plans,鈥� Esau told the 91视频 in December. 鈥淚 wish that we would have done it years ago. But we’re doing it now.鈥�

The system is designed to make permitting easier for large commercial customers who already have electronic plans. It will also allow some steps of the permitting process to be done remotely, eliminating the need for an estimated 33,000 vehicle trips annually to BDS’ downtown office.

The City Council issued authorization to move forward with the software upgrade during its meeting on Thursday.