ARIZONA DAILY STAR: Thurs., Oct. 23, 2008

Pima plans higher home impact fees

By Erica Meltzer

County seeks rate of about $8,800 per new house, twice current rate: Pima County plans to raise its road impact fees to about $8,800, nearly double the current rate. County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry said the county needs to raise its impact fees to keep pace with rising costs. Current impact fees of roughly $4,500 per house are based on construction costs from six years ago.

Huckelberry said he hopes to bring the proposed increase to the Board of Supervisors in December or January, with a final vote coming before the end of the fiscal year in June.

The supervisors approved a plan last year that eventually will raise impact fees in the fast-growing area southwest of Tucson as high as $15,000 to cover road costs, with additional fees to pay for infrastructure like flood control and parks to come in the future.

Builders would support the impact fees if the county could provide convincing evidence of real cost increases and could ensure money collected from builders would be spent in the same areas as their projects, said S AHBA Vice President Roger Yohem. However, he and SAHBA President Ed Taczanowsky were skeptical of the idea of aiming for regional parity. They said impact fees should go up regionwide or in specific high-impact areas, but not both. Taczanowsky said high impact fees in one area would not necessarily deter builders or buyers.

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