New road fees kick in next month for developers

The Calaveras Enterprise

Posted: Tuesday, January 15, 2013 9:08 am

Development in Calaveras County will get a little more expensive beginning next month thanks to a 3 percent road fee increase adopted by the Board of Supervisors in December.

The road impact mitigation fee, meant to fund county road improvement projects and offset the cost of expected population growth, can be adjusted by the board annually to reflect the price of asphalt and road construction.

February’s increase adds another 3 percent on top of a 6 percent boost settled on by board members in October, 2011, bringing the total cost of developing a typical new single-family home to $4,429, a $129 increase.

Office buildings of more than 1,000 square feet are set to cost developers $5,458 per parcel while commercial developments – including “high turnover” restaurants, gas stations and convenience stores – will soon call for $11,566 in per-parcel fees.

Tuolumne County, by contrast, charges $3,034 for small developments and $4,100 for parcels larger than 2 acres. Amador County charges $6,380 per parcel.

The Dec. 11 boost was approved by near-unanimous board resolution, with only Darren Spellman, a longtime opponent of road fee increases, bucking the move.

Now-retired District 2 Supervisor Steve Wilensky motioned the item, noting even higher fees don’t look to have stalled development in neighboring counties.

“It does not appear that a $35,000 (road impact mitigation fee) has slowed growth in El Dorado County,” Wilensky told the board. “So the linkage between fees and building permits appears not to be there so much as the linkage between having infrastructure and drawing development.”

Four in-progress road projects, including work on Valley Springs’ Highway 12/26 intersection and Highway 4’s Wagon Trail realignment, stand to benefit most from the increase, which goes into effect Feb. 11