The city of San Jose, California, pilots using AI technology to make the permitting process more efficient, with the goal of dealing with the state's housing crisis.
Silicon Valley City is an AI leader and AI incentive program, from the Govai Coalition to the recent Staff Upskills Initiative.
Authorities are steering AI to speed up workflow processes in a variety of ways, allowing for next targets:
“It's time to bring permission in the 21st century,” San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan said in a statement.
The city's Planning, Construction, and Code Enforcement Department (PBCE) will pilot the use of AI software and enable customers to view information about Accessory Residential Unit (ADU) applications before submitting them. The idea is to ease the time spent working on a common challenge. 90% of the city's ADU applications are sent back to customers to address the missing information. This missing information and subsequent additional reviews could slow the permitting process down for several weeks.
“If we can help applicants get in, we hope that we can better prepare the entire process, make the entire process more predictable and provide shorter allowance times,” said Stephen Keynes, Chief Innovation Director and City Budget Director and Senior Advisor to Mahan.
AI software aims to quickly identify missing or incomplete information about applications, speed up approval and reduce delays in order to have a better experience for both residents and builders. The pilot also aims to reduce workloads for city staff several hours each week, freeing up time that residents can spend more directly.
“I don't think that allowing cities to be innovated and allowed to grow faster is a crazy statement,” Keynes said. It reflects a common desire among residents and businesses to have a planning department that provides certainty and speed in the permitting process.
The first test phase, which will take place this fall, will be completed by city staff who use the software while manually checking applications to maintain human monitoring. This is a best practice for responsible AI use.
Internal testing is expected to be completed this fall, and the city could then be able to roll out a new process for ADU applicants themselves next year. The results of this pilot will determine whether this AI tool can be extended to other permit application processes, such as detached homes. This expansion could prove beneficial in responding quickly to climate disasters like LA Fires.
“We are dedicated to removing speculation from the permitting process and helping builders and residents move quickly with clarity and confidence,” PBCE Director Chris Burton said in a statement.
San Jose is not the first city to introduce artificial intelligence to its planning department. Bellevue, Washington, uses AI-powered “smart assistant” tool with GovStream.AI to speed up the permissions process. For now, planning staff are using AI assistants to search for parcel-specific zoning rules and cite them in development code to generate draft responses to residents' inquiries.
Currently, San Jose is testing CivCheck's software for pilots, but may work with other companies in the future.
The nation is facing a housing crisis, and as in the US as a whole, some experts argue that AI can help.
This AI pilot is just one of the ways PBCE is working to speed up the construction process. Other methods include providing building professional certification through ADU pre-approved ADU plans, programs that allow participants to bypass the building department's standard plan review process, and providing building fee estimators to residents.
Recently, San Jose pilots have focused on the efficiency of using AI to optimize bus routes. Tasha Dean, the chief communications officer in the mayor's office, averaged around 20% on the bus.
