Development Services

The Public Works Development Services (PWDS) section administers the City's municipal water, sewer, stormwater, and transportation infrastructure related to private development activity. Primary services provided by PWDS staff include public information, land use, plan review, permitting, and inspection services for development projects.

PWDS is located in the Permit Application Center at City Hall, Room 320, and provides a full range of services during normal working hours (for directions click here). If you would like more information about our services, please feel free to follow the links below. Because most development projects have unique complexities, impacts, and needs, customers and concerned citizens are encouraged to contact PWDS staff at any stage of a development project if they have any questions.

PWDS endeavors to balance the needs of all stakeholders in the development process to provide maximum benefit and minimize negative impacts to the community. As a result, there are many advantages to developing in Salem:

Site Development Fee - Most development permitting is funded through a Site Development Fee (SDF). The SDF is simple to calculate for ease of budgeting by the developer by being based per acre of developed area and is collected at the time of plan submittal and construction permit issuance. The SDF covers staff expenses for pre-applications, land use actions, plan reviews, inspections, and most other related permit costs. There are a few exceptions that are not covered by the SDF, including System Development Charges, water and sewer connection/assessment fees, costs associated with construction of major master plan-level facilities, and additional fees for phased permitting (meaning that a developer chooses to receive partial permits phased throughout construction).

Project Managers - PWDS will assign a project manager to a development project from the beginning to end. Project managers are licensed engineers who are knowledgeable in all aspects of development to ensure continuity throughout all stages of a development project. Project managers coordinate daily to ensure accuracy and consistency.

Development Speculation - Because developers make financial decisions based on information provided by PWDS staff, incomplete or inaccurate information can have devastating consequences. We have highly qualified project managers available at the counter or by telephone to answer developer questions.

Immediate Inspections - For a modest additional fee, specific inspections by PWDS staff will be performed within two hours of your phone call during normal business days and hours. Immediate inspections reduce construction expenses by allowing contractors to demobilize more quickly and reduce traffic impacts for motorists by expediting trench backfill.

Development Bulletin - PWDS staff publishes the Development Bulletin, a quarterly newsletter to keep neighborhood groups and developers informed about development issues that can affect the entire Salem community.

10-Day Expectation - All plan review applications are tracked by PWDS staff against a ten-day expectation. Most plan review comments are returned to developer representatives within ten working days, enabling design professionals to more efficiently schedule staffing and project completion. Projects taking longer than 15 days for PWDS staff to review and respond to may receive a 10 percent reduction of their plan review fees credited towards their permit fee.

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