§ 13-274. Development fee program

(a) Establishment of development impact fee program. A development impact fee program shall be established by resolution of the city council based on the comprehensive transportation system improvement program. The program shall set forth the basis for the fee as required by State Government Code Section 66001. The program shall establish guidelines for payment, accounting, and refund of the fees collected as required by State Government Code Sections 66001, 66006 and 66007.

(b) Updates of fee. On an annual basis, the city council shall review this fee program, as required by State Government Code Section 66002, to determine whether the fee amounts are reasonably related to the impacts of development projects and whether the described public facilities are still needed.

(c) Limited use of fees. The revenues raised by payment through this fee program shall be placed in a separate and special account and such revenues, along with any interest earnings on that account, shall be used solely to:

(1) Pay for the city's future construction of facilities or to reimburse the city for those facilities, described or listed in the program, constructed by the city with funds advanced by the city from other sources; or

(2) Reimburse developers who have been required or permitted to install such listed facilities to the extent the actual cost of the facilities installed by the developer exceeds the impact fee obligation of the development project.

(d) Developer construction of public facilities. Whenever the conditions of approval of a development project require direct construction of a public transportation facility (see section 13-275(c), Development project review procedures) described or listed in the comprehensive transportation system improvement program, a credit or reimbursement, as applicable, shall be given against the development impact fee, which would have been charged to the development project under the program, for actual construction costs incurred by the developer. The reimbursement and/or credit amount shall not include any improvements the city can require from the development project under the Subdivision Map Act, or the portion of the improvement deemed to be an on-site improvement that is not included in the comprehensive transportation system improvement program.

(e) Fee adjustments. A developer of any development project subject to the fee program provided in this article may apply to the city council for:

(1) A waiver of the fee, or portion of the fee, based upon adequate documentation of the absence of any reasonable relationship or nexus between the circulation impacts of that development project and either the amount of the fee charged or the type of facilities to be financed; or

(2) A reduction of the fee based upon the implementation of a transportation demand management program, as described in section 13-275(d), Development project review procedures.

(3) The application for a fee waiver shall be made in writing and filed with the city clerk not later than:

a. 10 days prior to the public hearing on the development permit application for the project; or

b. If no development permit is required, at the time of the filing of the request for a building permit.

(4) The application shall state in detail the factual basis for the claim of waiver. The city council shall consider the application at the public hearing on the permit application held within sixty (60) days after the filing of the application. The decision of the city council shall be final. If a waiver is granted, any change in use or increase in building intensity within the development project shall invalidate the waiver of the fee, and the developer shall be obligated to pay the full amount of the fee attributed to the development project, including the change in use or increase in intensity, as provided by this article.

(f) Fee refunds. A refund shall be made when a building permit expires and no extensions have been granted for a development project for which the funds have been collected and the development project has not been constructed.

(g) Fees for phased development projects. Where there is a requirement imposed upon a phased development project pursuant to this article for the payment of traffic impact fees into a comprehensive transportation system improvement program, such fees may be payable on a pro rata basis as each phase of the project is completed, in conjunction with the improvements accomplished.

(Ord. No. 97-11, § 2, 5-5-97)