More private developer fees to be paid to city

Now that a fee study has been completed, the city of Agoura Hills will recoup 100 percent of its planning, engineering, and building and safety costs that stem from private development.

The city reportedly has been subsidizing the developer costs for some time.

"Our goal is to just recover costs," said Nathan Hamburger, assistant to the city manager.

The new fee structure will be phased in over two years. Hamburger said the recovery of fees was acceptable as long as the fees were not excessive or didn't discourage people from obtaining the proper permits.

The study examined 71 city services and found the city was undercharging for most of them.

For instance, when a person applies for permit to run a day-care center they have traditionally been charged $409. The actual cost of providing the permit is $970 when overhead costs are calculated into the equation. The city was subsidizing $561 of the actual cost.

An environmental impact report costs far more. Prior to mid-August when the new fee program took effect, developers were only required to pay a $4,000 deposit, but the actual cost was more than $24,000. Hamburger explained that while the discrepancy appears to be great, some fees in the study were a combination of charges from both the engineering and planning departments.

"All of us here have heard we're the most expensive game in town," Mayor Denis Weber said at a City Council meeting earlier in the year. The study, conducted by Public Resources Management Group, LLC, proved otherwise. Councilmember John Edelston called for "balancing policy and politics."

The analysis reviewed direct costs associated with each fee-for-service category, including staff time. Staff costs included salary and benefits dollars assigned to the time spent by employees on specific tasks.

Indirect costs were determined with a formula that calculated a proportionate share of operating expenses and internal department administrative costs. Crossover work between various departments was also calculated into indirect costs.

Fifty percent of the increase will be applied from the 200607 fiscal year, and the remaining 50 percent would occur in 2007-08.

Hamburger gave another example to council members. The fee for an outdoor dining permit, once $240, will now cost an additional $1,237. Under the city's phased

implementation plan, the permit will cost an additional $619 this year, with the remaining increase occurring next year.

Hamburger also recommended some decreases in fees including those for tract maps, minor revisions of parcel maps and geological consultations.

The new fee schedule went into effect Aug. 1.