As provided in § 66484 of the California Government Code,
the County may establish a Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Fee. The
purpose of the Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Fee is to defray all
or a portion of the cost of improvements to bridges and major thoroughfares
that have been determined to be necessary as a result of an individual
project and/or the anticipated cumulative growth of a designated area.
The creation of Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Fees conforms to the
goals and objectives of the Merced County General Plan.
Nothing in this Chapter shall relieve an owner or developer from satisfying the improvement levels required by Chapter 16.08 of this Code or satisfying other conditions of approval that may be imposed.
(Ord. 1347, 1990)
An area, not necessarily contiguous, which has been established
by the Board of Supervisors as receiving benefit from improvements
to a bridge or major thoroughfare.
Any crossing necessary to provide for the movement of vehicles
over or under a railway, freeway, waterway, stream or canyon to satisfy
the transportation or flood control provisions of the Circulation
Element of the Merced County General Plan.
The Circulation Element portion of the Merced County General
Plan as required and described in Government Code § 65302.
The term "construction" as used in this section includes
design, acquisition of right-of-way, administration of construction
contracts, and actual construction.
The County of Merced, State of California.
Any project undertaken for the purpose of development. Generally,
"development projects" involve the issuance of a permit for construction
or reconstruction, but not a permit to operate. More specifically,
"development projects" may involve the recordation of a parcel map,
the recordation of a final subdivision map, or the issuance of a building
permit.
The Director of the Merced County Department of Public Works
and his authorized representatives.
A monetary fee, other than a tax or special assessment, which
will be charged by Merced County in connection with approval of a
development project for the purpose of defraying all or a portion
of the cost of improvements to bridges and major thoroughfares to
support the development project.
Those minor collectors, major collectors, arterials and freeways
identified in the Circulation Element of the Merced County General
Plan whose primary purpose is to carry through traffic and provide
a network connecting to the State highway system.
(Ord. 1347, 1990)
A.
Formation
Report. The Department of Public Works shall prepare a report for
each proposed Area of Benefit for which a Bridge and Major Thoroughfare
Fee under this Chapter is to be imposed. Said report shall contain
preliminary information related to the boundaries of the Area of Benefit,
the improvements, and the method of Bridge and Major Thoroughfare
Fee apportionment. The Area of Benefit may include land or improvements
in addition to the land or improvements which may be the subject of
existing map or building permit considerations.
B.
Public
Hearing. A public hearing shall be held by the Board of Supervisors
for each Area of Benefit to be created. Notice of said hearing shall
be given pursuant to Government Code § 65091 and shall include
preliminary information related to the boundaries of the Area of Benefit,
the improvements needed to be constructed, estimated cost of the needed
improvements, and the method of Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Fee
apportionment. The specific boundaries of the Area of Benefit, the
improvement costs, whether actual or estimated, and a fair method
of allocation of costs to the Area of Benefit and Bridge and Major
Thoroughfare Fee apportionment shall be established at said hearing.
C.
Public
Protests.
1.
Submission
of Protests. Owners of property within the proposed Area of Benefit
may file written protests with the Clerk of the Board of Supervisors
to the proposed benefit assessment at any time prior to the conclusion
of the public hearing held pursuant to this Code. Any protest may
be withdrawn by the owner protesting, in writing, at any time prior
to the conclusion of the public hearing held pursuant to this Code.
2.
Disposition
of Protests. If there is written protest by the owners of more than
one-half of the area of the property to be benefited by the improvements,
and sufficient protests are not withdrawn so as to reduce the area
represented to less than one-half of that to be benefited, then the
proposed proceedings shall be abandoned, and the legislative body
shall not, for one year from the filing of that written protest, commence
or carry on any proceedings for the same improvements or acquisitions
under the provisions of this section.
3.
Partial
Protests. If any majority protest is directed against only a portion
of the improvements, then all further proceedings under the provisions
of this section to construct that portion of the improvements so protested
against shall be barred for a period of one year, but the legislative
body may commence new proceedings not including any part of the improvements
or acquisitions so protested against. Nothing in this section prohibits
a legislative body, within that one-year period, from commencing and
carrying on new proceedings for the construction of a portion of the
improvements so protested against if it finds, by the affirmative
vote of four-fifths of its members, that the owners of more than one-half
of the area of the property to be benefited are in favor of going
forward with that portion of the improvements or acquisitions.
D.
Bridge
and Major Thoroughfare Fee Determination and Apportionment:
1.
The apportioned Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Fee shall be applicable to all property within the Area of Benefit and shall be required as provided in § 13.40.040.
2.
Where
the Area of Benefit includes lands not subject to the payment of Bridge
and Major Thoroughfare Fee pursuant to this section, the County of
Merced shall make provisions for payment of the share of improvement
costs apportioned to those lands from other sources.
3.
The
method of Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Fee apportionment, in the
case of major thoroughfares, shall not provide for a higher Bridge
and Major Thoroughfare Fee on land which abuts the proposed improvement
except where the abutting property is provided direct usable access
to the major thoroughfare.
4.
The
Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Fee shall not include the cost of constructing
any major thoroughfares unless they are in addition to, or a reconstruction
of, any existing major thoroughfares serving the area at the time
of the adoption of the boundaries of the Area of Benefit and have
been adopted and reflected in the Circulation Element of the General
Plan for at least 30 days.
5.
The
Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Fee shall not be expended to reimburse
the County for the original construction cost of bridge facilities
existing prior to the creation of the Area of Benefit.
6.
Nothing
in this section precludes the County of Merced from providing funds
for the construction of bridge facilities or major thoroughfares to
defray costs not allocated to the Area of Benefit.
E.
Area
of Benefit Resolution. A resolution shall be adopted by the Board
of Supervisors and shall contain a description of the boundaries of
the area of benefit, the improvements needed to be constructed, the
costs of the needed improvements, whether actual or estimated, and
the method of Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Fee apportionment established
at the hearing. A certified copy of said resolution shall be recorded
by the Board of Supervisors with the County Recorder.
(Ord. 1347, 1990)
A.
Bridge
and Major Thoroughfare Fee Required. All existing and newly created
parcels within an established Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Area of
Benefit are subject to the payment of a Bridge and Major Thoroughfare
Fee.
B.
No
Double Payment. The County shall keep accurate records of parcels
that have paid the required Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Fee to insure
that double payment does not occur.
However, if the use of a parcel that has previously paid a Bridge
and Major Thoroughfare Fee is being changed significantly, the payment
of an additional Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Fee may be required.
C.
Timing
of Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Fee Payment. The Bridge and Major
Thoroughfare Fee should be paid prior to issuance of a Building Permit
for parcels within an established Area of Benefit.
Pursuant to § 66007 of the California Government Code,
an applicant for a building permit may choose to delay the payment
of the Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Fee. In this case, the owner
of the property will be required to enter into a deferment of payment
agreement with the County to guarantee payment of the Bridge and Major
Thoroughfare Fee within the mandatory time limits.
Building Permits for a residential dwelling unit may delay the
payment of the Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Fee, with the use of
a Deferment of Payment Agreement, until the earliest such time as
stipulated in § 66007(a) of the California Government Code.
Building Permits for a non-residential building or structure
may delay the payment of the Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Fee, with
the use of a Deferment of Payment Agreement, over a period not to
exceed five years with one-fifth of the total fee being due each and
every year; the first required payment may be delayed until the earliest
such time as stipulated in § 66007(a) of the California Government
Code with subsequent payments due every 365 days until the entire
fee has been paid.
The deferment of payment agreement shall contain the information
necessary to conform to § 66007 of the California Government
Code. Applicants requesting a deferment of payment agreement will
be required to pay the County $150.00 at the time of application for
the building permit in order to reimburse the County for the additional
expenses incurred in processing said agreement. The County is required
to record a release of the deferment of payment agreement subsequent
to the Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Fee being paid in full.
The Director of Public Works is authorized to endorse Deferment
of Payment Agreements for the County of Merced.
D.
Bridge
and Major Thoroughfare Fee Reductions.
1.
In-Lieu
Considerations. The Board of Supervisors may accept considerations
(such as land, easements, dedications, structures, or construction)
in-lieu of the payment of the Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Fee, if
it finds that the considerations are equivalent in value to the Bridge
and Major Thoroughfare Fee apportioned under this Chapter and that
such in-lieu considerations will serve the purpose of this Chapter.
2.
In-Lieu
Requirements. The County may require the dedication and/or improvement
of right-of-way along a major thoroughfare and may reduce the Bridge
and Major Thoroughfare Fee apportioned to a parcel by an amount equal
to the value of the right-of-way and improvements, as determined by
the Director, if that value was included in the calculation of the
Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Fee.
If any of the aforementioned in-lieu considerations or Requirements
exceed the total Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Fee for the project,
the Developer and the County shall enter into a reimbursement agreement
for the excess in-lieu value provided. Reimbursement agreement shall
state the current dollar value of the in-lieu considerations or Requirements
and shall provide for a reimbursement adjustment of the dollar value
based on a commonly accepted construction inflation index.
E.
Bridge
and Major Thoroughfare Fee Exemptions: The payment of the Bridge and
Major Thoroughfare Fee shall not be required for the following situations:
1.
The
issuance of a building permit for the alteration or enlargement of
an existing residential structure or any accessory structures associated
with a residential dwelling provided that no additional dwelling unit
will be created.
2.
The
issuance of a building permit for the alteration or enlargement of
an existing non-residential building or structure provided that no
significant change in the potential for traffic generation to or from
the building site will occur.
F.
Protest
of Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Fee Payment. Any party may protest
the payment of the Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Fee. However, any
protest of the Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Fee payment must conform
to the requirements of § 66020 of the California Government Code.
(Ord. 1347, 1990; Ord. 1477, 1993)
A.
Separate
Accounts. A Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Fee paid pursuant to this
Chapter shall be deposited in a separate capital facilities account
or fund to avoid any co-mingling of the Bridge and Major Thoroughfare
Fee with other revenues and funds of the local agency. The Bridge
and Major Thoroughfare Fee shall be expended only for the purpose
for which it was originally collected.
For each separate account or fund established, the County shall
make available to the public the information required by § 66006(b)
of the California Government Code.
B.
Advancement
of Funds. The County may advance money from its general find or road
fund to pay the cost of constructing the improvements being financed
through the collection of the Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Fee. Any
advances provided by the County general fund or road fund shall be
reimbursed through future Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Fee deposits
into the Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Fee fund.
C.
Indebtedness.
The County may incur an interest-bearing indebtedness for the construction
of improvements being financed through the collection of the Bridge
and Major Thoroughfare Fee. However, the sole security for repayment
of that indebtedness shall be moneys in the Bridge and major Thoroughfare
Fee funds.
D.
Unexpended
or Uncommitted Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Fee Revenues. The County
shall make findings once each fiscal year with respect to any portion
of a Bridge and Major Thoroughfare Fee remaining unexpended or uncommitted
that has been on deposit in an account or fund five or more years.
These findings shall include the purpose to which the Bridge and Major
Thoroughfare Fee is to be put and the relationship between the Bridge
and Major Thoroughfare Fee and the purpose for which it was charged.
If the above findings cannot be made, the County shall refund
any unexpended or uncommitted portion of the Bridge and Major Thoroughfare
Fee revenues, including any interest accrued thereon, in conformance
with §66001 of the California Government Code.
(Ord. 1347, 1990)
