TO: Board of County Commissioners
THROUGH: John Titkanich, Jr.; County Administrator
FROM: Chris Balter; Planning and Development Services Director
DATE: April 8, 2025
SUBJECT: Proposed Fee for Reviewing and Approving Developer’s Agreements
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BACKGROUND
Currently, the County does not charge a dedicated fee for reviewing and approving developer’s agreements. These agreements typically involve multiple county departments-such as Planning, Engineering, Utilities, Parks, and Legal-and can require significant staff time and resources. Because no specific fee is assessed, multiple County funds absorb these costs. As a result, all taxpayers, rather than only those receiving direct benefit from the development, bear the financial responsibility.
ANALYSIS
Charging a fee for reviewing and approving developer’s agreements aligns with standard cost-recovery principles and ensures that the private sector, rather than the general public, covers expenses tied to private development. Similar jurisdictions regularly employ fee schedules to offset staff hours, consultant fees, and administrative overhead. Implementing a cost-recovery mechanism would:
• Promote Equity: Assigning fees to those generating the workload upholds the principle that costs should be borne by the primary beneficiaries.
• Enhance Fiscal Responsibility: The new fee would prevent reliance on general fund revenues, preserving taxpayer dollars for broader public initiatives.
• Improve Transparency: A well-defined fee structure, communicated to developers in advance, clarifies the cost obligations and fosters smoother project planning.
Although some concerns may arise about potentially deterring development, most well-designed, reasonable fees do not discourage legitimate projects. Instead, they provide predictability and help ensure that development costs are accurately priced into the project’s overall budget.
BUDGETARY IMPACT
By implementing a fee for developer’s agreement reviews, the County stands to recoup a significantly amount of expenses incurred as a result of review these agreements. Currently, staff time, external review costs, and related expenditures (legal advertisement and recording fees) for private development reviews deplete resources, primarily in the MSTU Fund, that could otherwise support publicly beneficial services. A dedicated fee schedule would help to recapture these expenses, making the process more sustainable and equitable for the County’s taxpayers. Over time, this policy would likely generate measurable savings for the MSTU Fund budget and free up funds for other community programs or capital improvements.
PREVIOUS BOARD ACTIONS
The County’s fee schedule(s) was most recently revised during the Board’s regular meeting on May 21, 2024, where staff presented a recommendation to amend the County’s fee schedule(s) to permit the waiver of certain development application and inspection fees for affordable housing projects. After thorough consideration and discussion, the Board of County Commissioners approved the modification, thereby reinforcing the County’s commitment to supporting affordable housing initiatives.
POTENTIAL FUTURE BOARD ACTIONS
N/A
STAFF RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that the Board of County Commissioners adopt the revised fee schedule to help recover costs associated with reviewing and approving developer’s agreements, and approve depositing these proceeds into the MSTU Fund.
ATTACHMENTS
1. Draft Fee Resolution