This chapter shall be known as the "Colebrookdale Township Impact Fee Ordinance of 2005."
[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Commissioners of Colebrookdale Township 10-3-2005 by Ord. No. 11-2005. Amendments noted where applicable.]
The purpose of this chapter is to establish an Impact Fee Program to ensure that the transportation system is available and adequate to support new growth and development. To advance this objective, there is hereby created an impact fee payable to the Township at the time of building permit issuance.
The Board of Commissioners hereby finds and declares that:
A.
The conditions and standards for the determination and imposition of the impact fee set forth herein are those set forth in Act 209 of 1990, and any and all amendments thereto (hereinafter referred to as the "Act"), and consist of:
(1)
The recitals set forth above;
(2)
The analysis, advice and recommendations of the Transportation Impact Fee Advisory Committee;
(3)
The Land Use Assumptions Report, as adopted by the Board of Commissioners;
(4)
The Roadway Sufficiency Analysis, as adopted by the Board of Commissioners;
(5)
The Transportation Capital Improvement Plan, as adopted by the Board of Commissioners; and
(6)
Such other conditions and standards as the Board of Commissioners may, by resolution, identify from time to time as being relevant and material to the imposition of an impact fee and consistent with the provisions of the Act and any amendments thereto.
B.
The office of the Township Manager, subject to review, oversight and control by the Board of Commissioners, shall administer the collection, disbursement and accounting of impact fees.
C.
The time, method and procedure for payment of impact fees shall be as set forth in § 295-16 of this chapter.
The terms and definitions set forth in Section 502-A of the Act are hereby adopted and incorporated in this chapter by reference.
There is hereby enacted an impact fee to be imposed upon new development for the purpose of funding off-site public transportation capital improvements authorized by the Act and as described in the Program adopted by the Board of Commissioners. Said impact fee shall apply to all new development or subdivisions within the transportation service area identified herein and shall be a condition precedent to final approval of a development or a subdivision plan or issuance of a building permit.
Impact fees collected pursuant to this chapter shall be expended for costs incurred for improvements attributable to new development and designated in the Transportation Capital Improvement Plan adopted by the Board of Commissioners in Resolution No. 9-2-05 for improvements within the transportation service area in which the new development will be located. Additionally, such fees may be used for the acquisition of land and rights-of-way, engineering, legal and planning costs, and all other costs, including debt service related to road improvements within the designated transportation service area, and including such proportionate amount of the Roadway Sufficiency Analysis as is allowed under the provisions of the Act.
The following documents, previously adopted by the Board of Commissioners, are hereby incorporated by reference in this chapter:
A.
Recommendations of the Impact Fee Advisory Committee as summarized in an August 2005 memorandum prepared by McMahon Associates, Inc., to the Colebrookdale Township Board of Commissioners.
B.
Land Use Assumptions Report, as adopted by Colebrookdale Township Resolution No. 4-1-05.
C.
Roadway Sufficiency Analysis, as adopted by Colebrookdale Township Resolution No. 9-1-05.
D.
The Transportation Capital Improvement Plan and the Impact Fee Schedule, as adopted by Colebrookdale Township Resolution No. 9-2-05.
E.
Designation of the Transportation Service Area as set forth on the "Traffic Impact Fee District Boundary Map," dated July, 2001, revised February 2005, as included in the Land Use Assumptions Report and incorporated herein by reference.
A.
Where intended to assist in determining the appropriate amount of traffic impact fees, the Township may require the preparation of special transportation studies or may consider studies prepared by the applicant to determine the traffic generation or circulation patterns in new nonresidential developments only; provided, however, that no studies may be required where the proposed development will not require a deviation from the land use assumptions used to create the Program.
B.
Any such studies required by the Township shall be submitted prior to the imposition of the impact fee and shall be considered in the determination of the fee.
This chapter shall be uniformly applicable to all development that occurs within the designated transportation service area.
No building permit shall be issued for a development in the designated transportation service area, as herein defined, unless the applicant therefor has paid the impact fee imposed by and calculated pursuant to this chapter.
Residential subdivision applications filed subsequent to the effective date of this chapter which consist only of the division of a single lot, tract or parcel of land into two residential lots, tracts or parcels of land shall be exempt from the application of this chapter; provided, however, that a lot, tract or parcel of land which exists as a single lot as of the effective date of this chapter, may be subdivided and exempted from the application of this chapter only one time. Any second or subsequent subdivision of any part of a lot, tract or parcel of land which existed as a single lot as of the effective date of this chapter (even if it is a subdivision creating only two residential lots) shall not be exempted from the application of this chapter.
A.
The impact fee for transportation capital improvements shall be based upon the total costs of the road improvements included in the adopted Transportation Capital Improvement Plan within the transportation service area attributable to and necessitated by new development within the service area as defined, divided by the number of anticipated peak-hour trips generated by all new development consistent with the adopted Land Use Assumptions Report and calculated in accordance with the Trip Generation Manual published by the Institute of Transportation Engineers, 7th or subsequent editions, which is hereby adopted by the Township, to equal a per-trip cost for transportation improvements within the service area.
B.
The specific impact fee for a specific new development or subdivision within the service area for road improvements shall be determined as of the date of preliminary land development or subdivision approval by multiplying the $1643 per weekday afternoon peak-hour trip cost established for the service area [as set forth in the Impact Fee Schedule adopted by the Township (Resolution 9-2-05)] by the estimated number of trips to be generated by the new development or subdivision using generally accepted traffic engineering standards.
C.
The Board of Commissioners may consider studies prepared by the applicant or may require the preparation of a special transportation study in order to determine traffic generation or circulation for a new nonresidential development to assist in the determination of the amount of the transportation fee for such development or subdivision.
A.
The transportation service area is established as shown on the "Traffic Impact Fee District Boundary Map," dated July, 2001, revised February 2005, as included in the Land Use Assumptions Report (incorporated herein by reference).
B.
Additional transportation service areas or combinations of transportation service areas may be designated by the Board of Commissioners from time to time consistent with the procedure set forth in this chapter and in consideration of the following factors:
(1)
The Colebrookdale Township Comprehensive Plan;
(2)
Any standards for adequate public facilities incorporated in the Program;
(3)
The projected build-out and timing of development areas;
(4)
The need for and cost of unprogrammed transportation improvements necessary to support projected development; and
(5)
Such other factors as the Board of Commissioners may deem relevant.
C.
Fees collected from development in the transportation service area will be used exclusively to fund transportation improvement projects scheduled for the service area.
Prior to making an application for a building permit, an applicant may request a nonbinding impact fee estimate from the Township, which shall be based upon the maximum development potential of the site pursuant to existing zoning regulations, unless the applicant specifies a lesser use of development.
A.
Collection of impact fee. Impact fees due pursuant to this chapter shall be collected by the Township in the manner prescribed herein prior to the issuance of a building permit.
B.
Establishment of fund. Upon receipt of impact fees, the Township Manager shall be responsible for the separate and proper accounting of such fees. All such fees shall be deposited in interest-bearing accounts in a bank authorized to receive deposits of the Township funds. Interest earned by each account shall be credited to that account and shall be used solely for the purpose specified for funds of such account.
C.
Establishment and maintenance of accounts. The Township Manager shall establish appropriate trust fund accounts and shall maintain records whereby impact fees collected can be segregated for the transportation service area.
D.
Maintenance of records. The Township Manager shall maintain and keep adequate financial records for each such account which shall show the source and disbursement of all revenues, which shall account for all monies received, and which shall ensure that the disbursement of funds from each account shall be used solely and exclusively for the provision of projects specified in the Program for the transportation service area.
Payment of the transportation capital improvements impact fee shall be made by the applicant prior to the issuance of a building permit by the Township to the applicant for development on the applicable site.
Any applicant who shall perform, at his own expense and with the consent and agreement of the Board of Commissioners, off-site improvements, as herein defined, shall be eligible for a credit from the impact fee otherwise due in the amount of the actual cost of such off-site improvements as approved by the Township Engineer. Such credit shall not exceed the amount of the impact fee.
A.
If the applicant makes such improvements, he must enter into an agreement with the Board of Commissioners prior to the issuance of any building permit. The agreement must establish the estimated cost of the improvement, the schedule for initiation and completion of the improvement, a requirement that the improvement be completed to Colebrookdale Township and Pennsylvania Department of Transportation standards and design criteria and such other terms and conditions as deemed necessary by the Board of Commissioners. The Board of Commissioners must review the improvement plan, verify costs and time schedules, determine if the improvement is an eligible improvement, and determine the amount of the applicable credit for such improvement to be applied to the otherwise applicable impact fee prior to issuance of any building permit. In no event shall the Board of Commissioners provide a credit that is greater than the applicable impact fee. If, however, the amount of the credit is calculated to be greater than the amount of the impact fee due, the applicant may use such excess credit toward the impact fees imposed on other building permits for development on the same site and in the same ownership, provided any such applicant shall be required to supply financial security sufficient, in the judgment of the Township, to cover the cost of any such improvement installed by the applicant for which credit is sought.
B.
An applicant shall be entitled as a credit against impact fees an amount equal to the fair market value of land dedicated by the applicant and accepted by the Township for future right-of-way, realignment or widening of existing roadways.
C.
An applicant shall be entitled as a credit against impact fees an amount equal to the value of any road improvement construction which is contained in the Transportation Capital Improvement Plan and which was performed at the applicant's expense.
Impact fees collected pursuant to this chapter shall be refunded, together with interest earned thereon, to the payer of the fees under the following circumstances:
A.
In the event the Township completes or terminates the capital improvements plan and there remain undisbursed funds, the respective payers shall be entitled to a share of the fund balance in the same proportion as the payer's impact fee payment plus interest earned bears to the total impact fees collected plus interest.
B.
In the event any specific road improvement project is completed at a cost to the Township less than 95% of the budgeted cost of the road project, the Township shall refund an amount equal to the excess budgeted cost over actual cost to the payers, pro rata, plus accumulated interest.
C.
In the event the Township fails to commence construction within three years of the scheduled construction date of the project as set forth in the Transportation Capital Improvement Plan, the Township shall refund the portion of the fee paid by any payer making written request therefore which is attributable to said project, with accumulated interest, provided no refund shall be paid with respect to any project actually begun prior to the receipt of such refund request.
D.
In the event the development for which impact fees were paid has not commenced prior to the expiration of the building permit issued therefor, the impact fees paid with accumulated interest shall be refunded to the payer. Further, if a building permit after issuance is altered in such a way as to reduce the indicated impact fee, the difference between the amount indicated and the amount actually paid shall be refunded. The payer, at his option, may roll over the impact fees attributable to an expired building permit to cover fees incurred by a renewal of said expired permit.
E.
With respect to refunds arising out of Subsection A or B hereof, any funds unclaimed within one year after notice as required by law shall be transferred to the general account of the Township, and the payer's entitlement to said refund shall lapse. It is the responsibility of the payer to provide the Township with the current address of his place of business.
This chapter shall not affect, in any manner, the permissible use of property, density of development, previously adopted design and improvement standards and requirements or any other aspect of the development of land or provision of public improvements which remain subject to applicable zoning, subdivision and land development, and street regulations of the Township, which shall be operative and remain in full force and effect without limitation with respect to all such development.
The impact fee is additional and supplemental to, and not in substitution of, any other requirements imposed by the Township on the development of land or the issuance of building permits. Nothing herein contained shall be deemed to alter or affect the Township's existing ordinances and regulations regarding on-site improvements. In no event shall a property owner be obligated to pay for transportation capital improvements in an amount in excess of the amount calculated pursuant to this chapter; provided, however, that a property owner may be required to pay, pursuant to Township ordinances, regulations or policies, for other public facilities in addition to the impact fee for transportation improvements as subdivided herein.
The provisions of this chapter shall be liberally construed to effectively carry out its purposes that are hereby found and declared to be in furtherance of the public health, safety, welfare and convenience.
Ordinance No. 8-2001 is specifically repealed. All other ordinances, Code sections or parts thereof in conflict herewith shall be repealed to the extent of such conflict.
Should any sentence, section, clause, part or provision of this chapter be declared by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, the same shall not affect the validity of this chapter as a whole, or any part thereof, other than the part declared to be invalid.
This chapter shall take effect upon its passage.