(1)080508 Park Development Impact Fees

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consultant, and representation from City Council, met again with BIA representatives on July 28, 2008. Fee methodology questions were addressed by the consultant, and the BIA further expressed their concerns with the proposed fee increases. For clarification, the primary concerns expressed by the BIA include the following. 1. LEVEL OF SERVICE - 2 ADDITIONAL ACRES OF PARK -LAND (OPEN SPACE) The studies cite that the city currently has a level of service roughly equating to 2.8 acres of parkland per 1,000 residents. The Quimby statute allows for the escalation of this level of service to 3 acres per 1,000 residents, which is being recommended by the study and by city staff. The Park Impact Fee Study recommends an additional 2 acres of open space be required to bring city requirements in-line with City Council vision, General Plan recommendation, and the Park & Facilities Master Plan vision, of 5 acres per 1,000 residents. This method of utilizing park development impact fees to augment parkland levels has proven successful in other communities. Initial analysis, using this method to deliver a level of service equating to fully -developed parkland at 5 acres per 1,000 residents, produced a recommended park development impact fee in excess of $10,000 per unit. After further analysis, staff is recommending that this additional 2 -acre requirement be for open space only, with minimal development, which significantly reduces the proposed fee to the current level, which is included in the study, at $5,317 for a single family home. It is important to note that this 2 -acre requirement would be imposed on new development only, and unlike Quimby requirements, this funding may be spent o—X on parkland to serve the new developments in Colton. In this way, there is assurance that this added 2 -acre requirement will serve exactly those developments from which fees are exacted, ensuring that future Colton residents are not being charged additional funds for deficiencies in current amenities which do not directly serve them. 2. LAND COSTS - MARKET VALUE OF LAND The studies list the "market value" of land at $253,000 per acre, for the purposes of calculation. This figure is based on comparable sales research conducted during the compilation of the studies. The BIA has noted that no Colton sales were included in this analysis, which is correct. In fact, the consultant made an effort to analyze Colton "comps" during research, however suitable data could not be located, which seems reasonable to staff, given minimal development in Colton during the research period. The consultant instead used comparable data from surrounding jurisdictions, which staff feels is suitable data for these purposes. Clearly, land value will fluctuate from time to time, making this projected number somewhat "relative" to current market conditions. This highlights the need to update this value on a regular basis, which has not occurred in recent years, and is the reason for incorporation of an administrative component to the development impact fee. Regular update of this land value will minimize large impacts in the future, and it is staff's intention to ensure regular updates henceforth. 3. FEE COMPARISION TO SURROUNDING COMMUNITIES It is correctly noted that the proposed fee increases would make Colton's fee higher than comparable fees in surrounding communities. A comparison table has been included for review as Exhibit C. It should be noted, regarding this point, that fees