Tampa eyes higher fees for developers
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The city of Tampa could raise the fees it levies on developers for the first time in over 30 years.
Why it matters: Higher fees, the city says, will provide the revenue needed to keep Tampa in step with population growth, inflation and travel demand.
Context: Tampa assesses impact fees to offset the costs that a new development has on public infrastructure, as well as for the public services needed to accommodate new residents.
- The city's fees haven't budged since 1989, even as inflation swelled. In that time, Tampa has welcomed over 100,000 new residents, with another 100,000 expected by 2045.
By the numbers: The average impact fee levied on a single-family home in Tampa is $1,772, compared with $914 per unit for a multi-family home, $4,505 for office space, $3,200 for retail and $1,399 for light industrial.
- Hillsborough, Osceola and Orange counties, on average, charge more than Tampa, as does the city of Sarasota, according to a press release.
How it works: Local governments in Florida can't raise impact fees higher than 50% except in "extraordinary circumstances." Tampa hopes to prove that such circumstances exist, in part due to inflation and population growth.
- State law also mandates two public workshops, during which the city council will determine whether Tampa meets the "extraordinary circumstances" requirement.
- Those workshops are scheduled for Sept. 25 and Oct. 30.
The other side: "Development projects [already] pay their own way. And I know people don't believe that, but they do," Stephen Michelini of the Tampa Bay Builders Association, told Axios.
- "We're never trying to get by with something and put the burden on somebody else," he added.
- "A fair and reasonable impact fee is fine," Michelini said. "But all of a sudden saying, 'We didn't catch up with this for however many years, and now we want a 50% increase'? You have to justify it."
Friction point: The state Legislature passed a law taking effect next year that will make it harder to raise impact fees, requiring a unanimous vote and raising the bar for extraordinary circumstances.
The bottom line: Tampa is determined to squeeze through its fee hike before that door slams shut on Jan. 1.