PATA History Pages

Developers Resist Impact Fees in Columbus

From the Columbus Dispatch

Developer says city stands to gain little from impact fees
Thursday, March 18, 2004
Mark Ferenchik
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

A $500-per-house impact fee isn’t going to make much of a dent in development costs for the city of Columbus, developer John McGory told the Columbus Metropolitan Club yesterday.

If 3,000 houses and condominiums are built in a year, a $500 fee would raise only $1.5 million. "That’s not going to pay for a mile of Morse Road," he said.

But if the city charged a $1,500 fee, houses would be less affordable, McGory said, and some home builders fear that could cost jobs.

Such is the debate over impact fees. Columbus hasn’t proposed anything yet, but officials are considering impact fees along with other ideas to help pay for police and fire service and build the roads, parks, and water and sewer lines that make development possible.

Mayor Michael B. Coleman announced his "pay as we grow" policy in November, saying the city alone cannot afford the cost of improvements and services.

During a Metropolitan Club forum at the Athletic Club of Columbus, city Development Director Mark Barbash said officials continue to look at targeting realestate taxes to pay for roads and utilities, and assessing property owners to pay for community services, in addition to impact fees.

But he said that the city’s plan also includes balancing residential growth with job growth, because new jobs mean new income tax and more city money to pay for services. Last month, Coleman formed a policy group of city leaders to recommend future growth policies.

Developers have been wary of impact fees, but McGory said there hasn’t been a lot of opposition so far.

"They need to be part of an overall growth plan for the community," McGory said.


mferenchik@dispatch.com

Impact Fee resistance

The Columbus Dispatch