DANA POINT : Sewer-Link Fees Cut for New Restaurants
The Dana Point Sanitary District has lowered sewer connection fees for new restaurants.
The change, approved earlier this month, has been welcomed by the city officials who said that previous charges were frightening away some prospective restaurateurs.
City officials say the new fee structure will have the effect of reducing sewer connection charges for large restaurants by up to 80%.
Under the new fee structure, a restaurant will be charged a flat fee of $5,000, and $25 for every 100 square feet above 1,200 square feet of building space. A fee of $50 will also be assessed for each seat above 20.
Before the fee change, a 4,800-square-foot restaurant with 150 seats would have paid about $75,000 for sewer connection, according John Sherwood, the city’s economic development coordinator. Now, the cost will be about $12,000.
Sherwood said that sales tax from restaurants makes up nearly half of all sales tax revenue collected by the city.
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