Awards are given at two levels—Awards of Excellence and Awards of Merit—across seven categories: Planning Project, Comprehensive Plan – Large Jurisdiction, Comprehensive Plan – Small Jurisdiction, Best Practices, Grass Roots Initiative, Small Area/Special Area Planning, and Special Focus Planning Initiative – County Holistic Innovation Project.

Only one Award of Excellence and one Award of Merit may be granted per category each year, and the Awards Jury may choose not to issue an award if submissions do not meet the required standards.

Hernando County Earns Award of Excellence for Best Practices

This year, Hernando County received an Award of Excellence in the Best Practices category for its initiative, AI – Native Planning and Permitting Acceleration for Post‑Hurricane Recovery.

Eighteen months ago, the County faced a significant challenge: back‑to‑back hurricanes created a surge in rebuilding activity at a time when staffing and processing capacity were already strained. The resulting permitting backlog slowed roof repairs and rebuilds for homeowners, delayed work for small builders and tradespeople, and prolonged uncertainty in storm‑impacted neighborhoods. Rather than adding steps to an already burdened workflow, the County chose to redesign the process from the ground up.

Partnering with SwiftGov, Hernando County implemented an AI‑native planning portal that was built to make development review faster, clearer, and more consistent—while preserving professional judgment and public safety.

The initial rollout focused on single‑family residential submittals, where predictable turnaround times were most critical. The system screens plans for accuracy and completeness, identifies zoning‑relevant features across plan sheets, and provides applicants with a structured list of corrective actions tied directly to adopted County standards.

Staff retain full authority over decisions but begin their review with organized files and machine‑generated prompts that can be validated or dismissed in seconds.

The results have been transformative. Average zoning review time for single‑family submissions dropped from roughly 30 days to under two hours, dramatically improving service for residents and small builders and helping the County eliminate its hurricane‑related backlog. The same approach now supports subdivision review at the neighborhood scale, enabling early identification of issues related to access, utilities, environmental overlays, and adjacent infrastructure—reducing costly redesigns later in the process.

Across both residential and subdivision contexts, the goal remains the same: move essential information to the front of the review, give planners a clear lane for professional judgment, and give applicants clarity about what is required and why.