History
Civic Solutions was established in 1991 and has maintained its focused commitment to serve public agencies for over 25 years. The idea for Civic Solutions emanated from its founder Tom Merrell’s passion for serving the public interest after almost 30 years of public service. Upon retiring in 1991, he began providing services for cities in the Southern California area and has grown the firm to provide urban planning and community development services for public agencies state-wide. Civic Solutions is a community development consulting firm that provides comprehensive planning and entitlement services to municipalities, special districts and other public agencies. The firm is established around the principle that community planning and development ultimately serve the public interest.
Downtown Solutions, a division of Civic Solutions, Inc., provides planning and urban design services to public sector clients. This division was established in 2003 to carry out Tom Merrell’s vision for an urban planning process that includes and embraces the notion of promoting community prosperity. We believe good planning finds its value in economic sustainability. This led to a special focus on urban revitalization. We seek projects the promote pride and reinvestment in the community, neighborhood preservation and the creation of downtown environments that become a magnet for local residents to enjoy for shopping, dining and entertainment.
Summary of Services
We Serve In The Public Interest
We provide “added value” service in all planning functions. The experienced professionals who staff our firm have extensive backgrounds in public sector service.
Our services include all functions of a municipal planning department, including discretionary case processing, public information services, code compliance/plan checking, site visits, mitigation monitoring, code enforcement, zoning code amendments, architectural design guidelines, specific plans, policy planning and general plan updates. We provide support services in the form of graphics, design evaluation, analysis of alternatives, report writing, environmental impact documentation, annexations, grant writing, housing elements, citizen participation programs and other community development activities.