This chapter shall apply not only to all properties
located within the municipal limits of the Town but also as a condition
precedent to all properties located outside the Town's limits seeking
connection to any of the Town's public utilities.
All property owners shall pay impact fees in
such amounts and at such times as provided herein. Such impact fees
shall represent that property owner's proportionate share of the Town's
reasonably anticipated capital costs of supplying municipal and/or
public services to the owner's property, either by using up existing
capacity (such impact fees thus being collected to replace that used-up
capacity in the future) or by presently expanding existing capacity
in order to provide such services to the owner's property. For purposes
hereof, "municipal and/or public services" includes but is not limited
to all capital expenditures and improvements by the Town (other than
those directly recovered from the property owner as reimbursement
for extension of Town facilities, front foot assessments, installation
charges, connection fees or the like) reasonably necessary or appropriate
to provide water, sanitary sewer, storm sewer and drainage, street
lighting and signage, traffic control devices, streets, curbs, sidewalks,
gutters, and police, fire, code enforcement, and emergency protection
and services to the residents and properties of the Town or served
by the Town's water treatment and distribution system.
[Amended 3-20-2006; 7-24-2006]
A. Water.
(1) Definitions. As used in this section, the following
words shall have the meanings indicated:
ANNUAL PRODUCTION DAYS
The number of days per year a structure is open for business
as documented by verifiable records.
EQUIVALENT DWELLING UNIT (EDU)
A term used to express the load produced on a water system,
approximately equal to one dwelling place or 300 gallons per day.
WATER FLOW
Shall be determined by water consumption in accordance with
water meter readings.
(2) Amount of impact fee: $3,000 per approved EDU.
(3) Assessment of impact fee.
(a)
Impact fees shall be assessed as outlined below:
|
Type of Structure
|
Assessment
(EDUs)
|
|
(1)
|
Any single-family residential dwelling with
one kitchen and one or more baths
|
1.0
|
|
(2)
|
Any multifamily residential dwelling with one
kitchen and one or more baths (per unit)
|
1.0
|
|
(3)
|
Any commercial, institutional or industrial
structure. Any nonresidential use other than (A) or (B)
|
Based on water consumption 1.0
|
(b)
The number of EDUs for structures under category
(3) above shall be estimated by the Town Engineer in accordance with
published flow data. After one year of operation, said structures
shall be evaluated and the number of EDUs recalculated based on the
following formula:
|
Water flow per year in gallons: (production
days x 300 gal/day/EDU)
|
(c)
Results will be rounded up to full number.
(d)
The impact fee adjustment shall be billed or
refunded at the time of the next regularly scheduled billing.
(e)
Impact fees shall be imposed for projects meeting the requirements of §
130-3B of this chapter.
(f)
Impact fees shall be waived for any property
connecting to the Town's water system within the first 365 days of
the date determined to be the completion date of the system in 2005.
B. Money in lieu of parkland. Where a cash contribution
in lieu of land dedication is required by the Town pursuant to the
Town's subdivision/land development regulations, an amount to be established
per "approved dwelling unit."
C. Fire protection. An impact fee of 0.25% of the construction value of the building permit of new residential dwellings (including single-family homes, townhouses, apartment units and mobile homes), calculated upon the fixed rate of $85 per square foot of construction cost in accordance with §
75-9, shall be assessed at the time the building permit is issued; provided that the impact fee for any single building permit shall not exceed $2,500. An impact fee of 0.25% of the construction value of the building permit of new nonresidential structures of all types (including tenant fit-outs of existing structures), calculated upon the fixed rate of $85 per square foot of construction cost in accordance with §
75-9, shall be assessed at the time the building permit is issued, provided that the impact fee for any single building permit shall not exceed $5,000. The proceeds of the impact fee shall be transferred by the Town to the Dagsboro Volunteer Fire Department, Inc. at the end of each quarter of each year to be used for capital equipment and facilities to enhance fire-protection services to the residents and properties of the Town. In order to be qualified to receive such impact fee, the Dagsboro Volunteer Fire Department, Inc. shall submit an annual audited report, prepared by a certified public accountant, of its use of these impact fees, no later than May 1 following the close of its fiscal year. If such report is not provided in a timely manner and/or if such report reflects a failure to account for the impact fees, the Town Council may withhold fees collected, without interest, until a satisfactory report has been accepted. At any time, in the Town Council's sole discretion, the Town Council may amend this chapter to eliminate, change or otherwise modify the provisions contained herein.
[Amended 4-23-2007]
D. Ambulance services. An impact fee of 0.25% of the construction value of the building permit of new residential dwellings (including single-family homes, townhouses, apartment units and mobile homes), calculated upon the fixed rate of $85 per square foot of construction cost in accordance with §
75-9, shall be assessed at the time the building permit is issued; provided that the impact fee for any single building permit shall not exceed $2,500. An impact fee of 0.25% of the construction value of the building permit of new nonresidential structures of all types (including tenant fit-outs of existing structures), calculated upon the fixed rate of $85 per square foot of construction cost in accordance with §
75-9, shall be assessed at the time the building permit is issued, provided that the impact fee for any single building permit shall not exceed $5,000. The proceeds of the impact fee shall be transferred by the Town to the Dagsboro Volunteer Fire Department, Inc at the end of each quarter of each year to be used for capital equipment and facilities to enhance fire-protection services to the residents and properties of the Town. In order to be qualified to receive such impact fee, the Dagsboro Volunteer Fire Department, Inc. shall submit an annual audited report, prepared by a certified public accountant, of its use of these impact fees, no later than May 1 following the close of its fiscal year. ff such report is not provided in a timely manner and/or if such report reflects a failure to account for the impact fees, the Town Council may withhold fees collected, without interest, until a satisfactory report has been accepted. At any time, in the Town Council's sole discretion, the Town Council may amend this chapter to eliminate, change or otherwise modify the provisions contained herein.
[Amended 4-23-2007]
E. Capital improvement impact fee for capital improvements for governmental, police, administrative and code enforcement improvements. An impact fee of $2,500 for each new residential dwelling unit (including single-family homes, townhouse units, apartment units, condominium units and mobile homes, if permitted) shall be assessed at the time of the issuance of the building permit for said structure, and an impact fee of $2,500 per equivalent dwelling unit for any commercial, industrial or business office structure shall be assessed at the time the building permit for said structure is issued. "Equivalent dwelling unit" is defined pursuant to §
130-5A(1). The proceeds of the impact fee shall be allocated in accordance with §
130-9. All residential units and/or commercial, business or industrial structures which have been issued a building permit prior to the date of enactment of this subsection shall be exempt from the impact fee imposed by this subsection.
[Amended 1-24-2022]
F. Exemptions. Building permits for decks, sheds, residential
additions, pools, fences, sidewalks, moving and demolition, signs
and renovations or repairs to existing structures are exempt from
this impact fee.
G. Annexation/deannexation
impact fees
[Added 6-20-2022]
(1) The
annexation/deannexation impact fee is designed to pay for the equitable
portion of the planning, design, and initial capital improvement costs
to provide municipal and/or public services to the new parcel(s) regardless
of use of density. This fee is intended to offset some of the risk
to the Town for utility expansion and capital improvements completed
in anticipation of future growth to said properties. The annexation/deannexation
impact fee, in combination with other impact fees permitted by the
Town Code, is the equitable share for such annexed properties in that
such amount creates a balance that distributes the financial burdens
previously borne and yet to be borne by those properties in comparison
with the other properties within the Town as a whole. such funds may
be deposited into the Capital Replacement account and, if so deposited,
may only be expended for the purpose of repair and replacement of
capital assets or improvements, the making of emergency repairs, major
renovations, or extensions or expansion, or any combination thereof,
to capital assets as determined by the Town Council.
(2) Annexation/deannexation
fees for all parcels zoned residential and nonresidential.
Number of Acres
|
Fee
|
---|
4.99 or less
|
$1,500 and all professional fees
|
5.0 to 9.99
|
$3,000 and all professional fees
|
10.0 to 24.99
|
$4,500 and all professional fees
|
25.00 or more
|
$6,000 and all professional fees
|
(3) Annexation/deannexation
impact fee is due and payable upon annexation.
Anything herein to the contrary notwithstanding,
where the property involved is subject to the procedures of the Town's
subdivision/land development regulations, the Town Council may, in
its absolute discretion and pursuant to a written agreement signed
by the developer (with appropriate security), allow any developer
to make payment of some or all amounts of any impact fees assessed
as herein above provided by means of “in-kind” contributions
(e.g., capital improvements, land) in lieu of cash payments, provided
that such in-kind contributions shall not be credited towards any
other dedications required pursuant to the Town's regulations.
Subject to the following limitation for new construction, the Town reserves the right to increase the amount of the impact fee assessed for each newly constructed unit to reflect one or more intervening increases in impact fees made pursuant to §
130-8 hereafter until a certificate of occupancy has been issued for that newly constructed unit or addition; whenever a building permit has been lawfully issued for the construction of any unit, then, unless and until that building permit shall have expired, been revoked, or been superseded by the issuance of a certificate of occupancy, the amount of the impact fee for that unit shall remain fixed at the amount in effect as of the date that the building permit for that unit was issued.
Annually, beginning January 1, 2006, the amount
of the impact fees set out above shall automatically be increased
to reflect inflation based upon changes in the consumer price index
as established by the U.S. Department of Labor for the Philadelphia-Wilmington-Atlantic
City (Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland) region for the
preceding 12 months; provided, however, that the Town Council may
act, by resolution adopted on or before December 31 of each year,
to waive the increase for the following year.