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Ashland considers new development fee Wants developers to pay more of planning costs By WENDY SIPOREN ASHLAND -- Developers may see a big jump in the cost of doing business in Ashland in the coming year, with further increases the following two years. As part of the fiscal year 2000-2001 budget, the city proposes to triple the amount of fee revenue it receives. It will do that by revising the fee structure for planning actions and introducing a community development fee for new construction based on a percentage of the value of the building. The current fee schedule, which ranges from $75 for a pre-application meeting to $1,300 for an action that goes to the City Council, hasn't been revised in almost 10 years. These fees are separate from building fees set by the state and system development charges that go toward the cost of infrastructure such as transportation and sewer. A new fee schedule will be part of a consultant's report presented to the council May 16. The community development department's budget will be presented to the Budget Committee at 3:30 p.m. Monday in Council Chambers at the Civic Center, 1175 E. Main. "There was a time in the U.S. ... when (people) felt that the bigger you are, the better you are and that subsidy by the taxpayers is a good thing," explained City Councilman Don Laws. "The policy of the council for many years has been to make our planning and building self-sustaining." "It's really a community question," said Community Development Director John McLaughlin. "Should the community as a whole through the general fund ... pay for our time?" If approved, the new fee levels would bring in an additional $135,000 to the general fund. Current planning and zoning fees will generate an estimated $65,000 this year. The goal is to bring in $200,000 next year and an additional $100,000 the following two years. McLaughlin estimates that his staff spends 75 percent of its time working on issues related to current development. But only 10 percent of the planning department budget is supported by existing planning fees. The goal is to raise that portion to 65 percent in the 2002-2003 fiscal year. In a town that already has a reputation for high system development charges, reaction from the developers is expected to be negative. But at least one developer familiar with city government says new development should pay its fair share of planning costs, as long as it's the actual cost of doing business. "I certainly don't have a problem with development paying its own way," said Larry Medinger, a partner in the Mountain Meadows retirement development. "If they've done their homework and looked at the actual cost of a planning action, then that's ... a clear connection. But if they turn it into something where they're just trying to make money by soaking one portion of the population, then that's not fair." Laws agreed. Long-range planning and planning for such things as open space and transportation benefit the whole community. But, said Laws, "we're not even close." "We're miles and miles from paying our community development department with fees and charges," said Laws. "A huge part of it is subsidized by the general fund." Earlier, the council raised concerns about the impact of higher fees on affordable housing. But both Medinger and Laws said they'd rather see a direct subsidy for housing than a broad-based subsidy of development through the general fund. "If we're going to do a subsidy, then let's do it directly and call it a subsidy," said Laws. Today's Edition : News | Sports | Business | Weather | Tempo | Classifieds Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA