Following approval by the Zionsville Town Council during the August 16 meeting, the Town of Zionsville has renamed the Planning and Economic Development Department to the Community and Economic Development Department. The department’s name change better reflects the role and value of the department has community-wide and the services rendered from the department to the community.
Within the department name change will be a change in title to the director – Wayne DeLong, AICP, CPM is now the Director of Community and Economic Development. Changes within the structure of the department include being home to the Municipal Action Center (MAC) – the customer-centric service module that will open its doors in the fall of 2021 – and increased use of the OpenGov digital customer service platform.
The Community and Economic Development Department continues to see increasing numbers of inspections requested, permits issued and public meetings. Year over year growth is on the rise and is projected to steadily increase. The department’s 19 team members are well-positioned to serve the growing needs of the community.
“Zionsville has and will always be both a unique and desirable community that is inviting to individuals, families and corporate residents,” said DeLong. “A goal of Mayor Emily Styron’s administration and our department is to maximize return on investment in terms of resources for the community and optimize the performance of the department in its support of the resident’s interests. While the challenges the world has seen over the last 18 months may have slowed our ability to achieve this level of modernization in the time we wanted, it did not stop our interest or drive to make these advancements for the benefit of the community.”
