Impact fees spark emotions
Posted on Tuesday, September 23, 2008
BENTONVILLE — Tempers flared and emotions ran high Monday night when the Bentonville City Council discussed hiring an outside firm to evaluate the city’s impact fees.
Meeting as a Committee of the Whole, the council discussed a proposed agreement with Tischlerbise Inc. to update the city’s impact- and capacity-fee study.
On Jan. 8, 2002, the Bentonville City Council enacted a city sewer-capacity-fee ordinance, a water-capacity-fee ordinance and a fire-impact--fee ordinance, all of which became effective on July 1, 2002.
In July 2006, the council approved additional fees for the city’s parks, library and police.
Tischlerbise conducted the city’s initial Impactfee study in 2002 and updated the study again in 2006.
Community Development Director Troy Galloway said the city’s need for impact fees need to be assessed every five years or when economic conditions warrant it.
“ You have to look at the local economy, permit activity and the level of growth, ” Galloway said.
City Finance Director Denise Land also noted that when the impact fees were initiated, they were used to fund a number of projects that can now be funded through a $ 110-million bond issue and extension of the city’s 1-cent sales tax approved by voters in 2007. “ We want to make sure we aren’t double-dipping, ” Land said.
Land also noted that impact fees are unreliable because as building slows in the city, impact-fee revenue does not come in.
W. P. “ Bill” Burckart, representing the Northwest Arkansas Home Builders Association, recently withdrew the impact suit the association lodged against the city over impact fees several years ago. Burckart is now running for Ward 3 Position 2 alderman against incumbent Bryan Bennett.
Burckart appeared before the council Monday to reiterate his stance that impact fees are an unnecessary burden on homeowners.
“ A lot of people here have lost jobs, a lot of companies have closed, and my peers in the housing industry have not only laid off every employee they have; they’ve gone bankrupt, ” Burckart said. “ Impact fees are not a reliable source of revenue, ” he added.
“ But they are a source of revenue, which is better than no source of revenue, ” Alderman Scott Comiskey said.
Alderman Ed Austin said he feels the impact fees should be left alone. “ Had we not passed impact fees, we would not have a lot of the things we have today, ” he said.
Austin added that a number of those in the building industry “ went bankrupt because they had to have three SUVs instead of a Chevrolet, like I drive. ” Burckart disagreed, saying that a number of his peers in the industry are “ barely getting by. ”
Galloway, along with Mayor Bob McCaslin, told the council that by hiring the outside firm Tischlerbise, the same company that provided the city’s previous studies could determine if the fees are still necessary or need to be adjusted.
At its meeting tonight, the council is expected to approve the agreement for the study. The meeting will be held at 6 at the Community Development Building, 305 S. W. A St.
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