Case Study: City of Tacoma achieves 74 hours/month time savings and 24/7 transparent permitting with Accela Building

Tacoma, WA Improving The Permit Process – A Quest to Hear The Customer and Support Innovative Solutions Services

The City of Tacoma, Washington — a midsize, fast-growing urban port south of Seattle — faced an inefficient permitting process that forced staff into double data entry and left residents unable to pay fees or check application status online. That lack of transparency and automation drove high office foot traffic, frequent service calls, and a poor citizen experience.

Tacoma implemented Accela Building, Accela Citizen Access and Accela Mobile, plus an in‑house “Tracker” using Accela APIs, to automate workflows and give 24/7 visibility into applications. The city saved about 30 hours/month processing over‑the‑counter permits and 44 hours/month via ePermits, eliminated third‑party submission tools, gained cross‑department reporting and open data, reduced office visits and calls, and freed staff to focus on strategic customer improvements.

City Of Tacoma

Jennifer Ward

Management Analyst