Placement: Second Reading of Ordinances / Public Hearing
Action Requested: Motion / Vote
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Ordinance 23-27, Public Hearing, Amending and Restating the City of Port St. Lucie Code of Ordinances Chapter 159, Article III, Entitled “Parks and Recreation Fee Schedule”.
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Submitted By: Bethany Grubbs, Planner III
Strategic Plan Link: The City's Goal of high-quality infrastructure and facilities.
Executive Summary (General Business): This is a request to adopt an updated Parks and Recreation Impact Fee Ordinance, Fee Schedule and the 2023 Impact Fee Study.
Presentation Information: Staff and TischlerBise, the City’s consultant, will provide a presentation.
Staff Recommendation: Move that the Council adopt the Ordinance amending and restating the City’s Parks and Recreation Impact Ordinance and Fee Schedule.
Alternate Recommendations:
1. Move that the Council amend the recommendation and approve the Ordinance amending and restating the City’s Parks and Recreation Impact Ordinance and Fee Schedule.
2. Move that the Council not approve the Ordinance and provide staff direction.
Background: The City of Port St. Lucie is updating its Development Impact Fees related to Parks and Recreation.
Local governments in Florida may assess impact fees to offset infrastructure costs necessitated by future growth. Impact fees are one-time payments used to capital improvements needed to accommodate future development; therefore, as vacant lands within Port St. Lucie develop, or as existing uses expand, the demand imposed upon Port St. Lucie for additional capital facilities increases proportionately. The fee represents future development’s proportionate share of capital improvement costs. Impact fees may be used for capital improvements or debt service for growth-related infrastructure. In contrast to general taxes, impact fees may not be used for operations, maintenance, replacement, or correcting existing deficiencies.
The Parks and Recreation Impact Fee was last updated and adopted in 2013. In 2019 the Budget Advisory Committee analyzed the City’s impact fees and made a number of findings. The Budget Advisory Committee recommended that the City study the fees and review the interlocal agreements with the County as they related to impact fees. Pursuant to those recommendations, an impact fee study was started but, it was put on hold while the City implemented mobility fees. Once the mobility fees were adopted, the City began working on the impact fee study.
The Florida Impact Fee Act, updated in 2021, places limitations on how much local governments, school districts, or special districts may increase an impact fee. An impact fee increase in excess of 50 percent of the current impact fee rate must be demonstrated by the extraordinary circumstances necessitating the need to exceed the phase-in limitations.
The City of Port St. Lucie’s 2023 Impact Fee Study demonstrates a clear “need” for improvements to accommodate future extraordinary growth and a clear “benefit” provided by those improvements, as required by the dual rational nexus test. As discussed further herein, the City is currently operating at a deficient level of service related to parks and recreation, and if the City uses the phase-in approach, the City will operate at an even more deficient level of service due to reduced impact fee revenue collections. The statutory cap will not cure the deficiency level in a time frame consistent with meeting evidenced needs and planned projects, and without adopting the proposed parks and recreation impact fee, the City will be perpetually underserving residents or creating a burden on existing residents by increasing the tax rate to meet unserved needs.
According to the analysis in the 2019 Parks and Recreation System Master Plan, the City of Port St. Lucie currently operates at a deficient level of service when compared to National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA) benchmarks for cities with a similar population and density. The master plan included a 2020 level of service of 7.2 acres of developable land per 1,000 residents. Based on projected population growth of approximately 115,000 residents during the next 10 years, the City will need 829 additional acres of developed park land to maintain the existing level of service. If the City uses the phase-in approach, the City will operate at an even more deficient level of service due to reduced impact fee revenue collections. Increasing the parks and recreation impact fee will allow Port St. Lucie to focus its limited General Fund revenues on operations, personnel, and deferred maintenance.
The proposed fee schedule may be found in the attached Ordinance 23-27 and will be effective on June 30, 2023.
On September 21, 2022, City staff provided a PowerPoint presentation at the Bi-Annual Stakeholder meeting to inform the stakeholders of the proposed fee updates.
On January 25, 2023, City staff held two informational workshops for the key stakeholders of the local development community and the general public. These workshops highlighted the need for the impact fee schedule update.
On March 13, 2023, an additional notice of the 3/15/23 Extraordinary Circumstances Workshops was provided via e-mail and phone calls to the key stakeholders in the development community.
On March 15, 2023, the City staff held two public workshops dedicated to the extraordinary circumstances necessitating the need to exceed the phase-in limitations for parks and recreation impact fees. To comply with the requirements of Florida Statue §163.31801(6)(g)(2), the public workshops were dedicated to providing an overview of the recently completed demonstrated needs study justifying an increase in excess of those authorized under Florida Statute §163.31801(6)(b),(c), and (d) and provided the public an opportunity to review the justification of extraordinary circumstances necessitating the need to exceed the phase-in limitations for parks and recreation impact fees.
On March 16, 2023, the Bi-Annual Stakeholder meeting agenda included a discussion of the first reading of the impact fee ordinances scheduled for 3/27/2023.
On March 24, 2023, City staff met with the Development Review Task Force.
On March 27, 2023, Council tabled the First Reading of the Ordinance to a date certain of April 24, 2023, and a Second Reading on May 8, 2023.
On March 31, 2023, City staff met with the Chamber of Commerce, Treasure Coast Builders Association, the Realtors Association, and the Economic Development Council to understand the concerns of the stakeholders, collect feedback, and discuss the technical report, presentations, and supporting documents.
Issues/Analysis: See attached, the 2023 Impact Fee Study
Financial Information: In 2019, the City of Port St. Lucie adopted the Parks and Recreation System Master Plan that outlines Phase I (FY 2019-2029) and Phase II (FY 2029-2039) capital improvements. The total cost of $328,218,950 represents the 2019 cost of $200,745,000 inflated to current dollars and includes growth-related improvements and improvements to serve existing development. The 2023 study excludes any park identified in the master plan as deferred maintenance or to be funded/constructed by private, County, or other partners. The cost of eligible projects included in the parks and recreation impact fees equal $262,273,340, and the analysis allocates the cost of these improvements to population growth from 2019 to 2039. This analysis uses a 2019 estimate of 191,903 persons and a 2039 projected population of 408,400 persons. To ensure future development pays only its proportionate share of costs, the growth share does not include costs related to population growth from 2019 to 2023.
On April 24, 2023, Council voted to approve the First Reading of the Ordinance. At that time, staff received direction from the Council to prepare alternate options for the Council to consider. On May 2, 2023, staff provided Council with three (3) options.
Special Consideration: N/A
Location of Project: N/A
Attachments:
1. Ordinance 23-27
2. 2023 Impact Fee Study (Technical Report)
3. Single-Family Fee Comparison
4. Parks Master Plan
5. 23 -24 CIP
6. Land Acquisition Costs
7. Staff Presentation
8. Consultant’s Presentation
9. Park Fee Options Presentation
10. Stakeholder Questions - SLC
11. Revised - Stakeholder Questions
12. Public Comment
NOTE: All of the listed items in the “Attachment” section above are in the custody of the City Clerk. Any item(s) not provided in City Council packets are available upon request from the City Clerk.
Internal Reference Number: 9831
Legal Sufficiency Review:
Reviewed by Margaret M. Carland, Senior Deputy City Attorney. Approved as to Legal form and sufficiency by James D. Stokes, City Attorney.