Manatee County ready to reinstate, raise impact fees that could add thousands to cost of a new home

MANATEE -- Developers bringing nearly 45,000 houses, condos and apartments online in the next decade in Manatee County are going to have to help pay for new schools, roads, parks, public safety, law enforcement and, perhaps for the first time, libraries.

When the economy went bust and housing construction stalled, developers still building got a break from impact fees but those days could soon be over. The Manatee County School Board is considering reinstating impact fees on new construction, including more than $6,000 per single family home for schools.

The Manatee County Commission is considering an increase in county impact fees, particularly in the eastern portion of the county, reinstating fees close to levels assessed in 2006.

Representatives from Bethesda, Md.-based TischlerBise, consultants hired by the Manatee County School District and county commissioners to conduct an impact fee study, updated both boards Tuesday and presented recommendations.

"If you are charging impact fees, you can't be charging them to refurbish existing schools or refurbish existing roads," assistant county attorney Bill Clague said. "Our job at the end of the day is to make sure you have a defensive fee."

School impact fee

Impact fees are collected on newly constructed homes and, in the school district's case, can only be used to help areas of growth, including constructing new schools, adding onto existing schools, expanding the bus fleet or buying more land.

"This doesn't solve other issues. This is something that helps us to address growth," board Chairman Bob Gause said. "It doesn't help us to address things like HVAC systems or security upgrades to schools."

School impact fees have not been collected since 2009 when a moratorium was enacted during the economic recession. The study was the first step, and a state requirement, for the school board to potentially reinstate impact fees.

At the Oct. 27 meeting, the board is expected to pass a resolution asking the county commission to reinstate impact fees. The resolution will then go to the planning commission Nov. 12 as part of the county impact fee report and the county commission Dec. 3 for adoption.

Carson Bise, president of TischlerBise, recommended the following school impact fees:

$3,276 for a multifamily or other style home.

$6,415 for a duplex or townhouse.

$6,086 for a single family home.

$1,372 for a mobile home.

The board could choose another option for impact fees. Members made no indication they would want to deviate from recommended fees.

"This is not new," Superintendent Diana Green said. "It is simply reinstating the fees that were in place in 2002."

Ultimately, school impact fees would need to be authorized by the county commission, which is responsible for a number of other impact fees.

Impact fees would not solve all financial problems created by growth, but would help, officials said.

"This is a big slice of that pie. It will help with growth related concerns," said district planner Mike Pendley.

County impact fee

The county impact fee plan is a bit more complicated. Fees based on geography, adding fees for libraries and reinstating administrative charges were among the suggestions made by Dwayne Guthrie with TischlerBise.

The proposed fees -- while higher in all four quadrants of the county -- are closer to fees charged to developers in 2006.

Transportation fees accounted for the most substantial changes in the proposed impact fees.

Guthrie said the fees are based on the amount of development expected in each area of the county and the amount of capital improvements required for the new construction.

For a new home in the northeast district of the county with between 1,701 to 2,200 square feet of finished living space, the proposed total impact fees would increase by $4,235 to $10,484, with $3,711 going toward transportation. For the same-sized home in the southwest district, proposed impact fees would increase by $1,028 to $7,277 with $504 of the increase going toward transportation.

TischlerBise highlighted how revenues from the different impact fees would be spent. Guthrie said these would help maintain the current level of service in the county. For example, the proposed new library fee could be used to expand Braden River Library and build a new library in East Manatee. TischlerBise determined the area needs a 16,000-square-foot library and 65,000 additional collection materials to accommodate growth over 10 years.

Clague reminded the commission impact fees are "about looking at infrastructure needed to serve new growth."

"It doesn't solve all the larger public policy problems," he said. "It's not an opportunity to do that. In fact, it would put us in a lot of legal trouble if we tried to do that."

Commission Chairwoman Betsy Benac said: "This is a fairly significant increase we are talking about."

With the most substantial proposed increases occurring in the eastern districts, Commissioner Vanessa Baugh said she felt they are taking advantage of the northeast and southeast.

"They are concerning to me because I see the biggest impact hitting East Manatee," Baugh said.

Baugh questioned how many people may decide not to move to Manatee County because fees are too high.

"They don't have to move to Manatee County," she said. "I am concerned about that. ... It's a little higher than what I anticipated with out east. I understand that's where the growth is. I understand that's where the roads need to be built."

As far as transportation, Clague said the purpose of the four districts is to ensure infrastructure is built where fees are paid.

"We are charging a lot of money, but at the same time it's not going to take care of a lot of the major issues we have." Baugh said.

County Administrator Ed Hunzeker said he will offer an idea for a citizens' financial restructuring review committee to be in place about five months.

"It is a limited time frame," Hunzeker said. "Let them share in the anxiety that we have and see that we can build some support in changing out some revenues. ... We can't rely on the revenues that we've historically relied on."

Meghin Delaney, education reporter, can be reached at 941-745-7081. Claire Aronson, Manatee County reporter, can be reached at 941-745-7024.

This story was originally published October 13, 2015 at 7:59 PM with the headline "Manatee County ready to reinstate, raise impact fees that could add thousands to cost of a new home ."