EDITORIAL: Impact fee hike badly most welcome

The Daily Sun story by Daniel Sutphin outlined how commissioners approved a hike in fees that will raise millions of dollars for projects like roads, libraries, public safety, etc. Without the increase in fees, the county was facing a multi-million-dollar shortfall in money needed for projects in the next few years.

Impact fees, for the record, are basically a tax on new development. The idea is that anyone building a new home or bringing a new business to Charlotte County which will impact our roads and infrastructure needs, should pay a fee to help pay for growth. For years, however, Charlotte County had failed to require that new development to pay the full amount the county was legally able to charge.

It was not a popular move for county commissioners to raise those fees that many felt would hamper new construction and maybe even persuade newcomers, and new businesses, to look elsewhere to relocate.

We, and others, argued all along that neighboring counties charged much more in impact fees than Charlotte County and the argument that our fees would be a detriment to new growth was not feasible. While construction blossomed in the county, we were in danger of being overwhelmed by costs for new roads, fire stations, additional law enforcement and utilities

Commissioner Joe Tiseo had long urged fellow commissioners to come aboard and vote to raise fees. Eventually, they saw the writing on the wall.

A 2021 impact fee study based on the 2010 census was used as a guideline. Based on those figures and those from the 2020 census it showed the county had grown from 159,978 people to 185,847 in 2020. Most believe that number today exceeds 200,000.

Categories the county uses to decide on fees include: transportation, community parks, public safety and sheriff, public buildings.

Commissioners approved raising most of those categories up to 90% of the fee allowed by the state. Libraries and parks, however, were left at 0%.

Not going for 100% in all categories will mean a revenue loss over the next few years of quite a chunk of money — we don’t have an exact figure available. We see no reason commissioners didn’t go all in and ask for the maximum revenue permissible.

Currently the county is in a 90-day waiting period before the new rates become official. A final number for what the impact fee on a single-family home will be was not available, but it will approach or exceed $10,000 based on past numbers.

This money is sorely needed for the county to keep up with the rapid growth it’s experiencing. We applaud the commissioners for making the decision, albeit months and even years late.

Now the board can focus on how best to use the additional revenue to make sure we continue to be the best value and most desirable destination in Florida.