City of Scranton Launches Online Permitting and Licensing Portal

Mayor Paige G. Cognetti announced that the City of Scranton has officially launched a new online permitting and licensing portal powered by cloud software provider OpenGov. The City is now inviting residents to apply for a select group of permits and licenses online via the new online service portal, accessible HERE. Over the next few months, more permit and license types will be added to the portal.

When the City of Scranton decided to make the transition to online permitting, its primary goal was to move away from a long-standing paper-based process. Along with streamlining internal processes, residents will experience convenient self-service, the ability to track, manage, and converse about applications in a single portal, and conditional forms that will improve application accuracy and reduce application time. Applicants will be able to print their permits and licenses from home and receive email notifications updating them when there are changes to their applications.

This move is part of a greater transformation of the City’s IT platform, which is rooted around four core applications: OpenGov Financials, OpenGov Citizen Services, NeoGov, and Cartegraph which will individually be utilized to modernize the City of Scranton’s Financial, License and Permitting, HR, and Fleet Management systems throughout 2022.

The City will continue accepting paper applications for the time being. The City will also maintain its current payment methods but will be moving to online payments soon.

“We are pleased to announce the launch of the city’s new online permitting and licensing portal powered by OpenGov’s Citizen Services Suite,” said Mayor Cognetti. “Maintaining long-standing, outdated processes is not a viable option for a modern city. Our taxpayers demand better services and replacing the City’s operating technology is an opportunity to change in how we meet our constituents’ needs and, especially with improved permitting services, support our economic development efforts.”

For additional help applying online, you can come to the front office in City Hall when it is open to the public, or you can go to the Scranton Public Library. The library offers free access to computers and trained library staff to assist patrons one-on-one. In the near future, the Library will offer free classes to teach the public how to use the Citizen Portal. These classes will be held in the library’s Technology Lab and taught by the computer instructor. Community members can reach the library by calling (570) 348-3000.

Email ahallock@scrantonpa.gov with questions.

You’re Invited: Scranton Economic Development Town Hall

The City of Scranton is developing a Strategic Economic Development Plan which will serve as an actionable and forward-looking vision to build upon the initiatives already underway throughout Scranton. The City and their partners at Fourth Economy Consulting are taking a stakeholder driven approach to the planning process by incorporating numerous community engagement opportunities, including one-on-one interviews and small group discussions. 

A summary of the team’s key quantitative and qualitative findings to-date can be found here.

In December, Fourth Economy hosted a series of Build Sessions – interactive workshops where community stakeholders came together to brainstorm and build solutions that will shape the Strategic Economic Development Plan. The workshops covered the following topic areas:

  • Industry
  • Talent Attraction & Retention
  • Community Identity & Neighborhood Reinvestment
  • Infrastructure
  • Housing

As follow up, the City of Scranton and Fourth Economy will be hosting a town hall meeting to share outputs from the Build Sessions and gather feedback on the initiatives that have been identified to date and insights into what may be still outstanding.

You’re invited to participate in this Town Hall on Thursday, January 20 at 8:30 a.m. It will be a virtual session open only to our collective membership. 

REGISTER HERE

Once you register, you will receive a confirmation email with a calendar invite.