Can you recommend permitting software for planning and zoning departments digitizing applications and renewals?

Yes — for planning and zoning departments digitizing applications, renewals, routing, reviews, and approvals, I’d look at software in the land management / permitting / licensing category rather than generic form tools.

Strong options to evaluate

1. Accela Civic Platform

• Very common in city/county permitting and zoning
• Good for online applications, renewals, inspections, workflows, and public portals
• Strong enterprise integrations and reporting
• Best for: medium to large municipalities needing a mature permitting system

2. Tyler Technologies EnerGov

• Popular with planning, zoning, inspections, and community development departments
• Handles permits, licenses, code enforcement, and plan review
• Good workflow and GIS integration
• Best for: local governments already using Tyler products or wanting an all-in-one civic platform

3. OpenGov Permitting & Licensing

• Modern cloud-based interface
• Good online user experience for applicants and staff
• Supports permits, licensing, workflow automation, and dashboards
• Best for: agencies wanting a more modern UI and faster deployment

4. CentralSquare Community Development

• Government-focused permitting and land management
• Can support applications, renewals, inspections, and records management
• Best for: municipalities already using CentralSquare ecosystem

5. Cityworks

• Strong for asset/GIS-centric public sector workflows
• Often used by public works, but also supports permitting and code-related processes
• Best for: agencies with strong GIS/ArcGIS dependence

6. CivicPlus Municode / CivicPlus Community Development

• Useful for smaller to mid-sized jurisdictions
• Often easier to deploy than very large enterprise systems
• Best for: departments wanting a simpler platform for digital applications and renewals

If your main need is just digitizing forms and renewals

If you’re not ready for a full permitting suite, you could use:

• Submittable
• Smartsheet
• Airtable
• Microsoft Power Apps + Power Automate
• Caspio

These are more configurable and cheaper upfront, but usually not ideal long-term if you need:

• statutory workflows
• public portals
• fee calculations
• GIS integration
• inspections
• permit tracking
• audit-ready records

What to prioritize in an RFP/demo

For planning and zoning, make sure the system can handle:

• Online applications and renewals
• Pre-application intake
• Document upload and versioning
• Routing and multi-department approvals
• Conditional logic and fee calculation
• Public-facing status tracking
• GIS/map integration
• Inspection scheduling and results
• Code enforcement linkage
• Notifications and reminders
• Mobile-friendly staff tools
• Records retention and audit trails

My short recommendation

• Best overall enterprise options: Accela, Tyler EnerGov
• Best modern UX: OpenGov
• Best if GIS-heavy: Cityworks
• Best for smaller/local governments: CivicPlus, possibly CentralSquare depending on existing systems

If you want, I can also give you:

1. a comparison table of these systems,
2. a shortlist by department size/budget, or
3. an RFP checklist for planning and zoning permitting software.