City seeks to streamline fees
Connie Baker
The City Council on Tuesday took steps to upgrade its impact fee
schedule by approving $50,000 to hire a consultant to update a system
developed in 1993.
Economic & Planning Systems Inc. (EPS), a land economics
consulting firm with offices in Berkeley, Denver and Sacramento, won
the bid out of 10 competing companies. The firm is experienced in
services relating to real estate, government and public
infrastructure, as well as financial feasibility and impact fee
analysis.
The city’s existing impact fee structure calls for a certain
amount of money per square foot from developers to support enhanced
city service and infrastructure that will be directly affected by the
new developments.
At last December’s annual review of the fee schedule, staff
recommended an updated study would be conducted to review the current
fees. In February, a committee was formed to evaluate the system and
assess the future needs of the city.
Currently, the impact fees benefit fire protection, library,
parks, police and transportation programs. According to staff, $3.6
million in fees have been brought in through the current system since
1993.
According to Ross Young, an administrative analyst for the city,
development fees are incurred by developers based on square footage.
For instance, an assessment of $1,876 is charged for a single-family
residence. The fee for a multi-family resi- dence is $1,388 per unit,
and commercial space charges begin at approximately $5.69 per square
foot.
“We do the assessments incrementally, and we want to have the fee
schedule based on the intensity of each particular use,” said Sue
Georgino, director of the Redevelopment Agency.
“When we have a growth in population based on new development,
there are impacts on the parks, sewers, etc., and the developers have
to pay for those impacts.”
The proposal from the firm will also include addressing added
potential beneficiaries of develop- ment impact fees, such as sewer,
water and storm- drain facilities, child-care facilities and
technology- related projects.