In order to implement the goals and objectives of the Circulation
Element of the City of Encinitas' General Plan and the San Diego Association
of Government's (SANDAG) Regional Transportation Plan, and to mitigate
the impacts caused by new development in the City, certain traffic
facilities must be constructed. The City Council has determined that
a development impact fee is needed in order to finance these public
improvements, and to pay for the development's fair share of the construction
of these improvements. It is the purpose of this chapter to impose
on persons developing real property a requirement to pay a fee to
provide for the traffic facilities needed to serve the development.
In establishing the fee described in the following sections, the City
Council has found the fee to be consistent with the City's General
Plan, and pursuant to
Government Code Section 65913.2, the City has
considered the effects of the fee with respect to the City's housing
needs as established in the Housing Element of the General Plan.
(Ord. 2008-08; Ord. 2014-04)
A. The
traffic mitigation fee shall be determined by the City Engineer, and
satisfied by the applicant as a condition of approval of the development
project. If the new development is in a new subdivision as defined
by
Government Code Section 66424, the fee shall be paid by the applicant
during the subdivision processing as a condition of the approval of
the proposed final or parcel map; or at the subdivider's option, a
covenant may be executed burdening each lot for a prorata share of
the fee, due as a condition of the issuance of a building permit.
If the development is not in a new subdivision, the fee shall be paid
by the applicant as a condition of the granting of a building permit
for the proposed development.
B. In
accordance with
Government Code Section 66007, in the case of residential
development the City shall only require the applicant to satisfy the
fee requirement as a condition of approval of the development prior
to the issuance of a certificate of occupancy. Unless the fees are
reimbursement to the City for expenditures previously made, the fees
will be payable to the City and placed in a separate account to fund
the construction for the needed public improvements or facilities
resulting from the development.
C. The
City may allow a credit in the amount based upon the value of on and
off-site road improvements constructed by the developer and dedicated
to the City which provide facilities as specified in the City's Transportation
Element, and for which the fee could be used in accordance with the
provisions of this chapter.
D. The
fees imposed by this chapter shall not be considered to be in lieu
of the dedications of land adjacent to the development and adjacent
road improvements which are required to be constructed by the developer
by the City's requirements as specified in the Encinitas Municipal
Code.
(Ord. 2008-08; Ord. 2014-04)
The following development is exempt from the regulations of
this chapter:
A. Construction
for public or governmental purposes;
B. Replacement
or remodels of existing residential structures which do not add new
units; or
C. Residential accessory units as defined in Municipal Code Section
30.48.040V.
(Ord. 2008-08; Ord. 2014-04)
Traffic mitigation fees shall be set in an amount as determined
by a City Council resolution and kept in the office of the City Clerk.
The fees shall be adjusted on July 1st of each year beginning
in 2015. The fees shall be increased in an amount approved by the
SANDAG Board of Directors that does not exceed the percentage increase
set forth in the Engineering Construction Cost Index published by
the Engineering News Record or similar cost of construction index
with a minimum increase of two percent.
(2011-06; Ord. 2014-04)
The traffic mitigation fee for single-family and other residential
developments will be charged per dwelling unit.
(Ord. 2014-04)
A. The
calculation of the traffic mitigation fee for other developments including
rural residential and nonresidential projects will be based on the
traffic mitigation fee for single family multiplied by the peak hour
trip generated by the development project. Where relevant to the fee,
the square footage of the proposed development project will be based
on the gross square footage within the structure. If applicable to
the specific development, the peak-hour-trips will be reduced by a
factor that is based upon the number of pass-by-trips. The fee shall
be determined as follows:
Single-Family Peak-Hour-Trips
|
X
|
Traffic Mitigation Fee
|
X
|
Reduction Factor for Pass-by-Trips if Applicable
|
=
|
Total Fee
|
B. If
the proposed project will not fully develop the proposed lot, then
a prorated fee shall be paid, and a covenant shall be executed agreeing
to pay an additional fee for all future development which expands
the coverage development of the lot. If a general plan amendment changes
the density for designation of use for the subject lot, the calculation
of the fee for subsequent development will be determined in accordance
with the then existing General Plan designation.
C. To
determine peak-hour-trips generated by nonresidential development,
the City Engineer, or designee, will refer first to the City's most
current schedule of peak-hour-trips and reduction factors, which is
established by resolution of the City Council and revised periodically.
If the specific proposed use is not identified on this schedule, the
City Engineer, or designee, will refer to the San Diego Association
of Government's (SANDAG) most recent "Traffic Generators' Manual's
(Not So) Brief Guide of Vehicular Traffic Generation Rates for San
Diego Region." If the peak hour and applicable reduction factor data
is absent from both of these schedules, the applicant will be required
to submit a traffic study or other relevant factual data which demonstrates
the traffic impacts of the development to the satisfaction of the
City Engineer.
(Ord. 2000-08; Ord. 2014-04)
A developer of any project subject to the fee described in this
chapter may apply to the City Engineer for a reduction or adjustment
of the fee based upon the absence of any reasonable relationship or
nexus between the traffic impacts of that development and the amount
of the fee charged. The application shall state in detail the factual
basis for the claim of waiver or reduction, and shall be accompanied
by a traffic study demonstrating that the cost of mitigating the traffic
impacts of the development is less than the amount of the fee charged
for the development. The application shall be made in writing to the
City Engineer at the time of the filing of the request for a final
or parcel map, or a building permit, and shall bear the seal of a
traffic engineer licensed by the State of California. The City Engineer
shall consider the fee adjustment application within 30 days of the
filing of the application. If a reduction or waiver is granted, any
subsequent change in use which results in an increase in peak-hour-trips
or pass-by-trip reduction factors within the project shall subject
the development to payment of the full fee.
(Ord. 2000-08; Ord. 2014-04; Ord. 2017-07)