NORTH PORT -
Looking for any way to help the city's stagnant home building industry, North Port is freezing impact fees, postponing increases that would have added about $3,000 to the cost of a new home.
Beginning Dec. 24, the fees to pay for the effects of development on the community were slated to go up to $9,909 for most new houses, up from $6,883 that builders now pay the city. That increase will not take effect for at least another year while North Port monitors the dismal home building market.
Years of overbuilding and inflated prices across the region have left North Port and surrounding areas with a glut of homes and dropping values.
"Right now the economy, no matter where you look, is in the dumper," said City Commissioner Fred Tower. "And I think if we even made the impact fees zero, right now, you might get two or three homes."
Other local governments have similarly limited increases. In April, Sarasota County delayed a 47 percent increase in its road impact fees, from $4,417 to $6,512 for a 1,000 square-foot home. And Charlotte County rolled back impact fees to 1998 levels, effective at the beginning of this year.
North Port leaders will review the impact fee structure in coming weeks with an eye toward reductions. This is the second time in as many years the city has delayed increasing the fees, and budget planners are still doing the math on how much the delay will cost the city.
At the time of last year's delay, the city projected a revenue loss in the millions. So far this year, North Port has issued only 112 new home permits, meaning less than $1 million in total impact fees. At the same time, commercial developments and large box stores have continued to generate impact fee revenue.
"Without the rooftops, the commercial is going to dry up," said Commissioner Jim Blucher.
Commercial impact fees will also be frozen for another year, meaning a savings of $5,622 for every 1,000 square feet of restaurant space or $862 for each 1,000 square feet for stores and banks.
"We don't know what January is going to be as far as the assessed valuations," said Commissioner Richard Lockhart, noting the $1.7 billion the city lost in terms of tax base this year as the local housing market, and corresponding values, plummeted.
The next impact fee increase is scheduled for Dec. 24, 2009.
