Title:
Land Use and Environmental Services Agency (LUESA) Fee Ordinance Changes (Second Reading)
Summary
ACTION:
Adopt an Ordinance Revising the Land Use and Environmental Services Agency (LUESA) Fee Ordinance
Staff Contact: W. Dave Canaan, LUESA Storm Water Services Division Director
Presentation: No
BACKGROUND/JUSTIFICATION:
By Interlocal Agreements, LUESA - Storm Water Services division provides Land Development services on behalf of the towns in Mecklenburg County. The services may vary from Town to Town. Generally, the services are comprised of performing plan review, permitting and inspection services for land development activities, such as, erosion control, storm water, transportation, zoning, etc. The Interlocal Agreements state that the County may charge fees to offset the costs incurred in providing these services on behalf of the Towns. Beginning July 1, 2019, the Town of Huntersville will provide all of these services themselves.
In preparation for the FY20 budget, Storm Water Services developed a time/expense tracking system, 100% cost recovery hourly rate model and Land Development fee model. The output from the system and models indicate that the fees currently being charged do not cover the expenses incurred by Storm Water Services. The towns and LUESA - Storm Water Services recommend revisions to the LUESA Fee Ordinance to achieve the following goals:
· County recover 100% of its costs and minimize subsidies
· Set fees to attain a Land Development Reserve Goal to fund pre-paid services by FY22
· Successfully transition Land Development Services to the Town of Huntersville while maintaining flexibility to address future unknowns.
Storm Water staff met with the Real Estate and Building Industry Coalition (REBIC) and the Land Development Committee of the Charlotte Homebuilders Association twice during the FY20 budget process. While these two groups expressed concern over the significant fee increases, they did support phasing in the fe...
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