HomeMy WebLinkAbout4688 Ordinance - Amending PMC Chapter 3.40 Impact FeesORDINANCE NO.4688
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF PASCO, WASHINGTON,
AMENDING PASCO MUNICIPAL CODE CHAPTER 3.40 "IMPACT FEES"
RELATED TO IMPACT FEE DEFERRAL PROGRAM.
WHEREAS, the Washington State Legislature adopted the Growth Management Act
which authorizes the collection of impact fees on development activity to provide necessary public
facilities that serve new growth, and development; and
WHEREAS, the Washington State Legislature adopted ESB 5293 in 2015 for counties,
cities, and towns that collect impact fees to adopt a fee deferral process, which allows applicants
to pay impact fees near the end of the construction process rather than at the beginning; and
WHEREAS, the Pasco City Council adopted Ordinance No 3719 in March 2005
establishing impact fees, including a process for deferring impact fees for single-family residences;
and
WHEREAS, the City has conducted a comprehensive outreach and engagement efforts
with community members and housing stakeholders as part of the Housing Action and
Implementation Plan to identify barriers to housing construction; and
WHEREAS, the temporary deferral of impact fees for eligible development projects is
expected to not only stimulate local economic growth but also enhance the affordability of housing
within the community.
NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PASCO,
WASHINGTON DO ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. That Section 3.40 entitled "Impact Fees" of the Pasco Municipal Code shall
be and hereby is amended and shall read as follows:
CHAPTER 3.40
IMPACT FEES
Sections:
3.40.010
Findings and purpose.
3.40.020
Applicability.
3.40.030
Geographic scope.
3.40.040
Definitions.
3.40.050
Imposition of transportation impact fees.
3.40.060
Fee schedule.
3.40.070
Time of payment of impact fee.
3.40.080
Credits.
3.40.090
Permitted adjustments.
Ordinance — Amending PMC 3.40 - 1
3.40.100
I-182 corridor traffic impact fund.
3.40.110
Refunds.
3.40.120
Appeals.
3.40.130
Enforcement.
3.40.010 Findings and purpose.
The City Council finds and determines that growth and development activities
within the City will create additional demand for the construction, improvement
and utilization of public streets, roadways, and right-of-way improvements by
bringing additional residents, visitors, businesses and customers into the City; and
further finds that growth and development activities should pay a proportionate
share of the costs of such necessary transportation and circulation facilities needed
to serve this growth and development activity. It is therefore necessary to regulate
property development to improve public transportation facilities through mitigating
the direct impacts of the development by the assessment of impact fees to insure
that these facilities are adequately funded and available to serve the increased
demand resulting from this growth and development. It is the intent that the
provisions of this chapter shall be liberally construed to effectively carry out the
purposes of the Council in establishing this impact fee. [Ord. 3719 § 1, 2005; Code
1970 § 3.132.010.]
3.40.020 Applicability.
The City shall collect transportation impact fees as provided in PMC 3.35.230 from
any applicant seeking development approval from the City for any development
activity within that portion of the City identified in PMC 3.40.030, where such
development activity requires the issuance of a building or occupancy permit. This
shall include, but not be limited to, the development of residential, commercial,
retail, office, and industrial land, and includes the expansion of existing uses that
create an additional demand upon public transportation facilities, as well as a
change in an existing use that creates an additional demand for public transportation
facilities. [Ord. 3719 § 1, 2005; Code 1970 § 3.132.020.]
Ordinance — Amending PMC 3.40 - 2
3.40.030 Geographic scope.
The boundaries within which the transportation impact fees shall be charged and
collected are those areas within the I-182 Corridor Subarea lying west of 20th
Avenue bounded on the north by the northern City boundaries and on the south and
west by the Columbia River, and shall include all unincorporated areas annexed to
the City on or after the effective date of the ordinance codified in this chapter and
the development of unincorporated properties that may create an additional demand
upon the public traffic facilities within this geographic area imposed pursuant to an
interlocal agreement between the City and the County specifically addressing the
identification and mitigation of these transportation impacts. [Ord. 3719 § 1, 2005;
Code 1970 § 3.132.030.]
3.40.040 Definitions.
"Applicant for impact fee deferral" means an applicant for a building permit that
also makes an application for impact fee deferral. It includes an entity that controls
the applicant, is controlled by the applicant or is under common control with the
applicant.
"Transfer" means sale as defined in RCW 82.45.010, forfeiture, foreclosure, trade,
gift, receivership, bankruptcy or other change in ownership or interest in real
property or improvements. [Ord. 4307, 2016; Code 1970 § 3.132.035.]
3.40.050 Imposition of transportation impact fees.
Transportation impact fees shall:
(1) Be imposed only for system improvements that are reasonably related to the
new development.
(2) Not exceed a proportionate share of the costs of system improvements that are
reasonably related to the new development.
(3) Be used for system improvements that will reasonably benefit the new
development.
(4) May be collected and spent only for transportation system and right-of-way
improvements which are addressed by the capital facilities plan element of
the City of Pasco Comprehensive Land Use Plan and adopted Subarea Plan
addressing the following elements:
(a) Deficiencies in public transportation facilities serving existing
development and the means by which existing deficiencies will be
eliminated within a reasonable period of time;
Ordinance — Amending PMC 3.40 - 3
(b) Additional demands placed on existing public facilities by new
development; and
(c) Additional public facility improvements required to serve new
development.
(5) Should not be imposed to mitigate the same off -site transportation facility
impacts that are mitigated by any other assessment required by ordinance or
law of the same development. [Ord. 3719 § 1, 2005; Code 1970 § 3.132.040.]
3.40.060 Fee schedule.
The transportation impact fee shall be paid as set forth in PMC 3.35.230. [Ord. 3719
§ 1, 2005; Code 1970 § 3.132.050.]
3.40.070 Time of payment of impact fee.
(1) All developers shall pay an impact fee in accordance with the provisions of
this chapter at the time that the applicable development permit is available for
issuance.
The impact fee as initially calculated, after issuance of a development permit,
may be recalculated at the time of payment if the development is modified or
conditioned in such a way as to alter the trip generation rate for the
development.
No development permit shall be issued until the impact fee is paid, except that
developers of residential subdivisions, short plats, or planned unit
developments may defer payment until building permits are issued for the lots
within the subdivision, short plat, or planned unit development.
A developer may obtain a preliminary determination of the impact fee before
application for a development permit upon providing the Director of
Community and Economic Development with the information necessary for
processing the application.
Impact fees may be paid under protest in order to obtain a permit or other
approval of development activity.
(2) Deferral of Impact Fees. For each single family residence for which any
impact fee deferral is applied for, an administrative fee set in Chapter 3.35
PMC must simultaneously be paid to the City due to the increased burden
placed on City staff for processing, recording and monitoring such deferrals.
(a) A separate application must be submitted for each single family
residence and or project being constructed. Only the first 50 appl eations-
Ordinance — Amending PMC 3.40 - 4
per- e lo,, dafyear- by each „„lie t-for-iM-nart-fap_ri€ orral arp Rliaihl,
4 ; r- 91 rder fhi-, ehanteI . If the City at any time collects impact
fees on behalf of one or more school districts for which the collection
of impact fees could be delayed, the City must consult with the district
or districts about the additional deferrals. The City must give additional
weight to recommendations of each applicable school district regarding
the number of deferrals. If the City disagrees with the recommendations
of one or more school districts, the City must provide the district or
districts with a written rationale for its decision.
(b) The period of deferral expires at the earliest of:
(i) The time of final inspection by the City;
(ii) The time of issuance of a certificate of occupancy by the City;
(iii) The time of closing or the first transfer of the property occurring
after the issuance of the applicable building permit; or
(iv) Eighteen months after the building permit is issued by the City.
(c) Final inspection and a certificate of occupancy will not be conducted or
issued until payment in full of the impact fees is made. For the first
transfer of the property, the impact fees shall be paid at closing if they
have not been previously paid. Unless an agreement to the contrary is
reached between the buyer and the seller, the payment of impact fees
due at closing of a sale must be made from the seller's proceeds. In the
absence of an agreement to the contrary, the seller bears strict liability
for the payment of the impact fees.
(d) The applicant for impact fee deferral must grant and record in favor of
the City an impact fee lien in the amount of the deferred impact fee. The
lien must be in a form signed, dated and approved by the City Attorney,
and signed by all owners of the property and persons or entities holding
any interest in the property, with all signatures acknowledged as
required for a deed, and recorded among the appropriate land records of
Franklin County. Proof of such recording shall be submitted to the City
before a building permit may be issued. The lien must specify that it is
binding on all successors in title after the recordation. The lien may
specify that it is subordinate to one mortgage for the purpose of
construction upon the same real property granted by the applicant for
impact fee deferral. A mortgage, deed of trust or other financing
mechanism shall be limited to the property upon which construction of
one single-family residence will occur. A lien not paid when due shall
bear interest at the statutory rate. A lien shall become due at the
expiration of the deferral date.
Ordinance — Amending PMC 3.40 - 5
(e) If impact fees are not paid in accordance with this section, the City may
institute foreclosure proceedings in accordance with Chapter 61.12
RCW. If the City of Pasco does not institute foreclosure proceedings for
unpaid school impact fees within 45 days after receiving notice from a
school district requesting that it do so, the district may institute
foreclosure proceedings with respect to the unpaid school impact fees.
(f) After full payment of impact fees, and upon written request of the person
paying said fees containing the name and address of the requester
together with a copy of a proposed lien release form, the City, upon
approval by the City Attorney, shall sign a lien release and deliver it to
the person paying said fee either in person or by first-class mail. The
property owner at the time of the release, at his or her expense, is
responsible for recording the lien release. [Ord. 4307, 2016; Ord. 3719
§ 1, 2005; Code 1970 § 3.132.060.]
(g) An annual report shall be prepared by the Department of Community
and Economic Development Department evaluating and summarizing
the impact(s) of the deferral program.
3.40.080 Credits.
A credit, not to exceed the transportation impact fee otherwise payable, shall be
provided for the actual value of any dedication of land for, improvement to, or new
construction of any transportation system improvements provided by the developer
to facilities that are identified in the capital transportation facilities plan and
required by the City as a condition of approving the development activity subject
to the permit. [Ord. 3719 § 1, 2005; Code 1970 § 3.132.070.]
3.40.090 Permitted adjustments.
The Director of Community and Economic Development may adjust the standard
transportation impact fee at the time the fee is imposed as may be necessary to
accommodate unusual circumstances in specific cases to insure that impact fees are
imposed fairly.
The amount of the fee to be imposed on a particular development may be adjusted
by the Director of Community and Economic Development after having given
consideration to studies and other data available to the Director of Community and
Economic Development or submitted by the developer demonstrating to the
satisfaction of the Director of Community and Economic Development that an
adjustment should be made in order to carry out the purposes of this chapter.
Ordinance — Amending PMC 3.40 - 6
The transportation impact fee may provide for system improvement costs
previously incurred by the City to the extent that new growth and development will
be served by the previously constructed improvements provided such fee shall not
be imposed to make up for any systems improvement deficiencies. [Ord. 3719 § 1,
2005; Code 1970 § 3.132.080.]
3.40.100 I-182 corridor traffic impact fund.
The I-182 Corridor Impact Fund is hereby created into which traffic impact fees
shall be deposited as a special interest -bearing account. All interest shall be retained
in the account and expended for the purpose or purposes for which the traffic impact
fees were imposed. Annually, a report showing the source and amount of all
moneys collected, earned or received to the account, and system improvements that
were financed in whole or in part by the impact fees shall be prepared and presented
to the City Council.
Traffic impact fees for transportation system improvements shall be expended only
in conformance with the capital facilities plan element and adopted subarea plans
of the City of Pasco Comprehensive Plan.
Traffic impact fees shall be expended or encumbered for permissible use within six
years of receipt, unless there exists an extraordinary or compelling reason for fees
to be held longer than six years. Such extraordinary or compelling reasons shall be
identified in written findings by the City Council. [Ord. 3719 § 1, 2005; Code 1970
§ 3.132.090.]
3.40.110 Refunds.
(1) The current owner of the property as reflected in the records of the Franklin
County Auditor, on which an impact fee has been paid, may receive a refund
of such fees if the City fails to expend or encumber the impact fees within six
years of the date the fees were paid or longer as designated by the City Council
by written findings on public transportation facilities intended to benefit the
development activity for which the impact fees were paid. In determining
whether traffic impact fees have been encumbered, impact fees shall be
considered encumbered on a first in, first out basis. The City shall notify
potential claimants by first-class mail deposited with the United States postal
service at the last known address of the claimant.
(2) The request for refund must be submitted to the City Council by depositing the
same in the office of the City Clerk by written notice within one year of the
date the right to claim the refund arises or the date that notice is given,
whichever is later. Any impact fees that are not expended within these time
limits, and for which no application for refund has been made within this one-
year period, shall be retained and expended on the indicated capital facilities.
Ordinance — Amending PMC 3.40 - 7
Refunds of transportation impact fees shall include actual interest earned on
the impact fees.
(3) In the event the City seeks to terminate any and all impact fee requirements,
all unexpended or unencumbered funds, including interest earned, shall be
refunded. Upon the finding by the City Council that any and all fund
requirements are to be terminated, the City shall place a notice of such
termination and the availability of refunds in a newspaper of general
circulation at least two times and shall notify all potential claimants by first-
class mail to the last known address of the claimants. All funds available for
refund shall be retained for a period of one year. At the end of one year, any
remaining funds shall be retained by the City, but must be expended for the
indicated public transportation facility. This notice requirement shall not
apply if there are no unexpended or unencumbered balances within the
account being terminated.
(4) A developer may request and shall receive a refund, including interest earned
on the impact fees, when the developer does not proceed with the
development activity and no impact has resulted. [Ord. 3719 § 1, 2005; Code
1970 § 3.132.100.]
3.40.120 Appeals.
(1) A developer may appeal the amount of a transportation impact fee determined
by the Director of Community and Economic Development to the City
Hearing Examiner under the procedures provided in Chapter 25.195 PMC.
The developer shall have the burden of proving:
(a) An error was committed in calculating the assessment of the impact fee
or the developer's proportionate share.
(b) Such fee does not mitigate a direct impact.
(c) The City based its determination on incorrect data. A developer may also
submit such other information deemed relevant or appropriate for the
purpose of disputing the impact fee.
(d) The Director of Community and Economic Development shall meet with
the developer and such other parties as are deemed necessary in order
to resolve the dispute. If the dispute is not resolved by the Director, the
developer may appeal the imposition of the impact fee to the Hearing
Examiner. The Hearing Examiner only determines whether the fee is
reasonable, but does not make any adjustment thereto. The Hearing
Examiner may remand the matter to the Community and Economic
Development Department for further consideration consistent with the
Hearing Examiner's decision.
Ordinance — Amending PMC 3.40 - 8
(2) An appeal from a decision of the Director of Community and Economic
Development must be filed with the Hearing Examiner within 10 calendar
days of the Director's written decision regarding the fee amount. [Ord. 3719
§ 1, 2005; Code 1970 § 3.132.110.]
3.40.130 Enforcement.
When a development has been identified as having a direct impact upon the public
transportation facilities, and an impact fee has not been paid, the requested permit
may be denied.
A development permit issued after the effective date of this Ordinance shall be null
and void if issued without substantial compliance with this chapter. [Ord. 3719 § 1,
2005; Code 1970 § 3.132.120.]
Section 2. Severability. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase or word
of this ordinance should be held to the invalid or unconstitutional by a court of competent
jurisdiction, such invalidity or unconstitutionality thereof shall not affect the validity or
constitutionality of any other section, subsection, sentence, clause phrase or word of this ordinance.
Section 3. Corrections. Upon approval by the city attorney, the city clerk or the code
reviser are authorized to make necessary corrections to this ordinance, including scrivener's errors
or clerical mistakes; reference to other local, state, or federal laws, rules, or regulations; or
numbering or referencing of ordinances or their sections and subsections.
Section 4. Effective Date. This ordinance shall take full force and effect five (5) days
after approval, passage and publication as required by law.
Ordinance — Amending PMC 3.40 - 9
PASSED by the City Council of the City of Pasco, Washington, on this 6"' day of
November, 2023.
7E4
Blanche Barajas
Mayor
ATTEST:
Debra Barham, CMC
City Clerk
Published:
Ordinance —Amending PMC 3.40 - 10
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
Ker guson Law, PLLC
Ci y Attorneys