Case Study: Pima County achieves faster permitting, inspections, and 90% online applications with Accela

Pima County Modernizes Planning, Permitting and Inspection Processes with Accela Community Development Solutions

Pima County, Arizona (population 1.023 million) faced a largely paper-based, time-consuming permitting, planning and inspection system that required in‑office permit applications, long review cycles and limited project transparency across roughly 35,000 annual inspections. The county’s challenge was to fast-track the customer experience, improve turnaround times and provide real-time visibility into project status.

By deploying Accela Citizen Access, Building, Planning, GIS and Mobile, Pima County digitized end-to-end workflows and field operations. Results include 90% of applications submitted online, plan issuance reduced from 20 days to 3–5 days, every employee saving eight hours per week previously spent stamping plans, inspector ETAs reduced by 62.5% with 45‑minute arrival windows, 100% digital field operations, and reduced office foot traffic and phone inquiries.

Pima County

Tracey Gutheim

Operations Manager for Development Services