New impact fee schedule in Manatee goes into effect Monday

MANATEE -- Leading up to the higher impact fees going into effect, Manatee County government has seen an uptick in permit applications, according to a county official.

"Every time a fee goes up we will get a rush of people to get in under the old fee," John Barnott, the county's building and development services director, said. "Nothing unusual. We are used to it. We planned for it."

On Monday, the new impact fee schedule goes into effect, which includes the increased county impact fees and the reinstated school impact fees.

Impact fees are collected on newly constructed residential, retail and commercial development and can be used to help pay for new schools, roads, parks, public safety, law enforcement and libraries.

For new construction, the county determines how much in impact fees will be paid when the building permit application is submitted but the impact fees are not collected until a certificate of occupancy is issued, Barnott said.

"The date the application is submitted is when the impact fees are determined," he said.

The county commission and the Manatee County School District hired TischlerBise to complete an impact fee study, on which the new rates are based.

"I think the people affected have all had the opportunity to participate in the process," Dan Schlandt, deputy county administrator, said. "They should know what is going on, what the impacts are and how it affects them."

In December, county commissioners voted to raise fees by 80 percent of the amount recommended by the consultant, and then increase that to 90 percent in the second year and to 100 percent in the third year.

The school board sent a resolution to the commission asking for the commission to start recollecting school impact fees at 50 percent of the recommended amount the first year, 75 percent the second year and 100 percent the third year. The board added a caveat, stating they wanted to collection rate to return to 50 percent if voters approve an extension of a half-cent sales tax for the schools. The tax sunsets at the end of 2017, and board members have stated that extending the sales tax is an issue of high importance.

After the county commission approved the school's reinstatement plan, members of the community and the board have waffled on whether the caveat was the right decision. At a school board meeting on Tuesday, the board discussed whether they should revisit the caveat and potentially ask the county commission to remove that portion of the resolution.

The board is slated to take action on the issue during its April 26 meeting.

While the exact amount the fees will increase by will depend on the size of the house or other building and its location in the county, the increase, at the 80 percent level, is projected to bring an additional $2.1 million in revenues for the county, or 14.4 percent more, than what the current fees bring in today.

At the rates collected today, impact fees generate $14.5 million a year.

For the first time, the county will have a library impact fee in addition to the parks, law enforcement, public safety and transportation impact fees. There will also be an administrative charge.

Education reporter Meghin Delaney contributed to this report.

Claire Aronson, Manatee County reporter, can be reached at 941-745-7024. Follow her on Twitter@Claire_Aronson.

This story was originally published April 15, 2016 at 10:55 AM with the headline "New impact fee schedule in Manatee goes into effect Monday ."