REPORT TO THE CITY COUNCIL
February 27, 2020
FROM: SCOTT L. MOZIER, PE, Director
Public Works Department
BY: ANDREW J. BENELLI, PE, City Engineer / Assistant Director
Public Works Department, Traffic Operations and Planning
SUBJECT
Title
HEARING to consider adoption of the 553rd Amendment to the Master Fee Schedule Resolution No. 80-420 to Increase Copper River Impact Fees for Interior Collector Roadways and decrease Copper River Impact fees for Major Roadway Infrastructure and Sewer Backbone Facilities; Acceptance and Adoption of the Public Review Draft Fee Study Update for Copper River Ranch (District 6):
1. ***RESOLUTION - 553rd Amendment to the Master Fee Schedule Resolution No. 80-420 to adjust Copper River Ranch Impact Fees. (Subject to Mayor’s veto)
Body
RECOMMENDATIONS
Staff recommends the Council adopt the 553rd Amendment to the Master Fee Schedule, Resolution No. 80-420, to increase the Copper River Ranch Impact Fees for Interior Collector Roadways, and to decrease the Copper River Impact Fees for Major Roadway Infrastructure and Sewer Backbone Facilities.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Copper River Ranch is a master planned development located on north of Copper Avenue, between Friant Road and Willow Avenue. New homes, multi-family units and commercial buildings constructed in Copper River pay all of the citywide impact fees and also pay fees that are unique to the master planned community. The fees that are collected are used to mitigate impacts from new development, and serve to provide reimbursement to the master developer (Assemi Group, Inc.) for street and sewer improvements. The revenue from these fees cannot legally be used outside of the master planned development. The master developers support keeping these fees high enough to fully reimburse them for true cost of the infrastructure construction. The Assemi Group hired QK Engineering & Planning to update the Nexus study and to determine the fair and correct fees. The nexus study determined that the Major Roadway fee should be reduced from while the Interior Collector Roadway needs to be increased. QK also determined that the Sewer Backbone fee should be reduced. The recommended fees are shown in the table below:
|
Impact Fee |
Existing Fee |
Recommended Fee |
|
|
|
|
|
Major Roadway Infrastructure per gross acre |
$7,972 |
$4,836 |
|
Interior Collector Roadway per gross acre |
$26,676 |
$31,155 |
|
Sewer Backbone Facility Fee per EDU* |
$877 |
$479 |
*Equivalent Dwelling Unit
BACKGROUND
The Assemi Group is the master developer for Copper River Ranch, a planned development that is bounded by Friant Road, Copper Avenue, Willow Avenue, and Silaxo Road. Construction of new single family homes, multifamily, and commercial projects are required to pay all of the citywide impact fees and also pay the Copper River Ranch Impact Fees. The impact fees for Copper River Ranch were first adopted by the Council in August 2007. The Nexus Study was updated in May 2009. The Assemi Group hired QK Engineering and Planning to prepare the original nexus study, and have retained them again to update the nexus study.
QK determined that the Associated Major Roadway Infrastructure Facility fee should be reduced from $7,972 per gross acre to $4,836 per gross acre. The Interior Collector Roadway Facility Fee needs to be increased $26,676 per gross acre to $31,155 per gross acre. The Sewer Backbone System Facility Fee is also recommended to be reduced from $877 per dwelling unit to $479 per dwelling unit.
SUMMARY OF NEXUS FINDINGS
After considering the Nexus Studies for the fee updates, the facility standards, the cost of facilities, supporting documents, the 2035 General Plan, all correspondence received and any public testimony received during the public hearing held on February 27, 2020 (“the Record”), the City Council approves and adopts the Public Review Draft for the 2019 Copper River Ranch Impact Fee Nexus Study Update which is provided as an attachment to the staff report. The Council makes the following findings:
1. PURPOSE OF THE FEES: The Record demonstrates the purposes of the proposed impact fees to be updated. The Copper River Ranch Impact Fees will fund the new Major Roadways, Interior Collector Roadways and Sewer Backbone System necessary to serve new residential and non-residential development in Copper River. New development in the Copper River Ranch will require new street and sewer infrastructure and the revenue from the fees will be needed to fund that infrastructure.
2. USE OF FEES: The Record demonstrates how each proposed fee to be updated will be used. The Associated Major Roadway Infrastructure Facility fee revenue will be used to construct new development’s proportionate share of major roadways within and surrounding Copper River Ranch. The Interior Collector Roadway Facility Fee will be used to construct new development’s proportionate share of collector roadways within Copper River Ranch. The Sewer Backbone System Facility fee will be used to construct new development’s share of backbone sewer pipes within Copper River Ranch.
3. RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN USE OF FEES AND TYPE OF DEVELOPMENT: The Record demonstrates the direct and cumulative impacts of new development upon existing infrastructure and facilities. The development of new residential and non-residential land uses in Copper River Ranch will generate the need for improvements to the surrounding major roadways, construction of new collector roadways within Copper River Ranch, and the installation of new sewer backbone pipes within Copper River Ranch.
4. RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN NEED FOR FACILITY AND TYPE OF PROJECT: The Record demonstrates the demand generated by new development for each type of infrastructure or facility. Each new residential and non-residential development project will generate additional demand for improvements to the major roadways that surround Copper River Ranch. They will also generate demand for the construction of new collector roads and new backbone sewers in Copper River Ranch.
5. RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN AMOUNT OF FEES AND COST OF OR PORTIONS OF FACILITY ATTRIBUTED TO DEVELOPMENT ON WHICH FEE IS IMPOSED: The Record demonstrates the City’s 2035 General Plan, the associated MEIR and the Copper River Ranch MEIR identified improvements necessary to serve new development. The costs of the improvements to the associated major roadways, the construction of new collector roadways, and the installation of new sewer backbone collection system needed to serve new development were divided by the parcel size (gross acres) of the development for the associated major roadways and the interior collector streets and by the equivalent dwelling units for the sewer backbone system facility fee.
ENVIRONMENTAL FINDINGS
This item is not a project pursuant to CEQA Guidelines section 15378. First, the Copper River Major Roadway Infrastructure, Interior Collector Roadway, and Sewer Backbone Facility Fees, in and of themselves, do not have the potential for resulting in either a direct physical change in the environment, or a reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment and therefore are not considered a "project" under CEQA. (Pub. Resources Code, § 21065, 14 Cal. Code Regs., § 15378, subd. (a).) Further, the fees are considered a government funding mechanism that do not involve any commitment on behalf of the City to any specific project which may result in a potentially significant physical impact on the environment. (14 Cal. Code Regs., § 15378, subd. (b)(4).)
The Copper River Major Roadway Infrastructure, Interior Collector Roadway, and Sewer Backbone Facility Fee programs are intended to fund as-yet unknown, future projects and programs, which may include potential infrastructure related to growth. The proposed Copper River Major Roadway Infrastructure, Interior Collector Roadway, and Sewer Backbone Facility Fees do not commit the City to approve any particular project, program, or capital improvement, but will be placed in a separate fund for potential unidentified future projects. Adoption of the Copper River Major Roadway Infrastructure, Interior Collector Roadway, and Sewer Backbone Facility Fees involves no commitment to any project which may result in a significant physical impact on the environment. Any activities, including infrastructure improvements, which may be funded by these fees will be subject to future environmental review under CEQA, if applicable, prior to Council approval.
LOCAL PREFERENCE
Local preference was not considered because this item does not involve a bid or an award of construction or services contract
FISCAL IMPACT
The proposed adjustments to the Copper River Ranch development impact fees will not have an impact on the General Fund or any existing enterprise funds. Revenue generated will be used to reimburse the master developer for construction of roadway and sewer infrastructure. The fees include an administration component to pay for staff resources used to collect the fees, manage the revenue and prepare annual reports as required by the Mitigation Fee Act (AB1600).
Attachments:
Resolution - 553rd Amendment to the Master Fee Schedule
2019 Fee Study Update for Copper River Ranch