The following development impact fees are established and shall be imposed on the issuance of all building permits for development within the City to finance the cost of the following categories of public facilities and improvements required by new development:

The amount of each fee shall be the amount listed in the City’s Development Impact Fee Schedule (attached as Exhibit “A” and incorporated in this chapter by this reference).

The amount of each fee set forth in the Development Impact Fee Schedule may be more specifically set and revised periodically by resolution of the City Council, with this ordinance being considered as enabling and directive in this regard.

Any person who, after the effective date of the ordinance codified in this chapter, seeks to develop land within the City by applying for a building permit, is required to pay the appropriate development impact fees established pursuant to Section 17.144.010 as the same may be applicable, in the manner, amount and for the purposes therein referenced.

No permits or extension of permits for the activities referenced in subsection A of this section shall be granted unless and until the appropriate development impact fees required have been paid to the City.

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary set forth in subsection A of this section, or in any other provision of this chapter, the development impact fees as established pursuant to Section 17.144.010 shall apply to any development project which has heretofore received a tentative map approval or other approval from the City, where the approval of the same, assented to by the developer, has been conditioned upon payment of the fees established as a result of the City’s analysis and study pertaining to development impact fees.

A law enforcement facilities, vehicles and equipment fund is established. Said fund is for payment of the actual or estimated costs of constructing and improving law enforcement facilities and purchasing and improving law enforcement equipment and training, including any required acquisition of land.

A fire suppression facilities and response vehicles fund is established. Said fund is for payment of the actual or estimated costs of constructing and improving fire facilities and purchasing and improving fire fighting equipment and training, including any required acquisition of land.

A streets, bridges and traffic signals fund is established. Said fund is for payment of the actual or estimated costs of constructing and improving streets, traffic signals and bridges, including any required acquisition of land.

A storm drainage facilities fund is established. Said fund is for payment of the actual or estimated costs of constructing and improving storm drainage, including any required acquisition of land.

A general facilities, vehicles and equipment fund is established. Said fund is for payment of actual or estimated costs of constructing and improving general facilities, vehicles and equipment, including any required acquisition of land.

A community (public use) center facilities fund is established. Said fund is for payment of actual or estimated costs of constructing and improving library facilities, public meeting facilities and aquatic facilities, including any required acquisition of land.

An aquatic center facilities fund is established. Said fund is for payment of actual or estimated costs for construction of additional aquatic centers that will benefit Desert Hot Springs residents and shall not be spent in rehabilitation of the existing aquatic center.

A park acquisition and development fund is established. Said fund is for payment of actual or estimated costs of constructing and improving recreation facilities, and the required acquisition of land, as well as grading, irrigation and turfing costs associated therewith.

The fees established pursuant to this chapter shall be paid for the property on which a development project is proposed at the time of the issuance of any required building permit, except as otherwise provided below. Provided, however, that fees imposed on residential development shall be collected in accordance with the provisions of California Government Code Section 66007, as the same presently exists or may hereafter be amended from time to time. The term “building permit” as used herein includes any permits required for construction, reconstruction, remodeling, moving structures into the city, and the like, such as electrical and plumbing permits, moving permits, and the like.

The fees created pursuant to this chapter shall be calculated on the basis of net acreage or number of units, as set forth in the Development Impact Fee Schedule. For development projects containing a fraction of a net acre, the fee shall be calculated on the fraction of the acre involved in the development project. All fees collected shall be promptly transferred for deposit in the appropriate fund referenced in Section 17.144.050. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the fee for streets and thoroughfares in the case of commercial and industrial developments shall be calculated on the basis of gross square footage (i.e., all of the floor area confined by the outside surface of the exterior walls of a building, except for that floor area devoted solely to vehicle parking or circulation) times the rate per square foot established in Development Impact Fee Schedule.

A developer of any project subject to the fees described herein may apply to the City Council for a reduction, adjustment, or waiver of any 1 or more of said fees, based upon the absence of any reasonable relationship or nexus between the impacts of that development and either the amount of the fee(s) charged or the type of facilities to be financed.

The application shall be made in writing and filed with the City Clerk not later than 10 days prior to the public hearing on the development permit application for the project. If no public hearing is required, the application must be submitted at the time of the filing of the request for a building permit. The application shall state in detail the factual basis for the claim of waiver, reduction, or adjustment.

The City Council shall consider the application at the public hearing on the permit application or at a separate public hearing held within 60 days after the filing of the fee adjustment application, whichever is later. The hearing shall be noticed and conducted in the same fashion and manner as prescribed by the laws of the City for hearings on Development Permits. The decision of the City Council shall be final.

If a reduction, adjustment, or waiver is granted, any change in use within the project shall invalidate the waiver, adjustment or reduction of the fee if such change in use would render the same inappropriate.

The City Council may, from time to time, and as the need may arise, set forth, by Council resolution, specific limitations which will apply to reductions, adjustments, or waivers of development impact fees, which may be made pursuant to this section. In this regard, this chapter shall be considered enabling and directory.

Funds collected from development impact fees shall be used for the purpose of:

In the event that bonds or similar debt instruments are issued for advanced provision of public facilities for which development impact fees may be expended, impact fees may be used to pay debt service on such bonds or similar debt instruments to the extent that the facilities provided are of the type to which the fees involved relate.

At least once each fiscal period, the City Manager or his/her duly authorized designee shall present to the City Council a proposed 5-year capital improvement program for the various public facilities referenced in Section 17.144.010 assigning monies (including any accrued interest) from the funds referenced in Section 17.144.050 to specific improvement projects and related expenses. Monies, including any accrued interest, not assigned in any fiscal period shall be retained in the same fund until the next fiscal period except as provided by the refund provisions of Section 17.144.100.

Funds may be used to provide refunds as described in Section 17.144.100.

If a building permit expires without commencement of construction, then the fee payer shall be entitled to a refund, without interest, of the impact fee paid as a condition for its issuance, except that the City shall retain 1% of the fee to offset a portion of the costs of collection and refund. The fee payer must submit an application for such a refund to the City Manager within 30 calendar days of the expiration of the permit. Failure to timely submit the required application for refund shall constitute a waiver of any right to the refund.

In the event any fee collected pursuant to this chapter remains unexpended or uncommitted in any fund established pursuant to Section 17.144.050 for 5 or more years after deposit of said fee, the City shall make findings once each fiscal year to identify the purpose to which the fee is to be put and to demonstrate a reasonable relationship between the fee and the purpose for which it was charged.

The unexpended or uncommitted portion of the fee, and any interest accrued thereon, for which need cannot be demonstrated pursuant to subsection B of this section, shall be refunded to the then current record owner or owners of lots or units of the development project or projects on a prorated basis.

The provisions of California Government Code Section 66001(f) and (e), (d) shall apply fully to any refund of fees remaining unexpended or uncommitted in any such city fund for 5 or more years after deposit, and the provisions of subsections B and C of this section, shall be subordinate to said section and shall be applied consistent therewith.

Alterations, renovations, or expansion of an existing building or structure where no additional dwelling units are created and the use is not changed; provided, however, that expansion of an existing commercial or industrial building or structure shall not be exempt from the fee for streets or thoroughfares; and

The replacement of a destroyed or partially destroyed or damaged building or structure with a new building or structure of the same size and use, unless otherwise agreed to by the developer in a development agreement or other legally binding agreement.

New development that, through demolition or conversion will eliminate existing development is entitled to a fee credit if the existing development is a lawful use under this Zoning Ordinance, including a nonconforming use.

New development that will replace development that was partially or totally destroyed by fire, flood, earthquake, mudslide, or other casualty or act of God, is entitled to a fee credit if the development that was partially or totally destroyed was a lawful use under this Zoning Ordinance, including a nonconforming use, at the time thereof, unless otherwise agreed to by the developer in a development agreement or other legally binding agreement.

Credit for such eliminated development or development that was partially or totally destroyed (as above specified) shall be calculated by the City Engineer in accordance with the Development Impact Fee Schedule and shall be applied to new development on the same site.

Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, new development shall be given a credit against the fee due hereunder for park and recreation facilities to the extent of the amount of any fees paid and/or the value of any land dedicated by such new development, as well as the value of any credit due any such new development, for park and recreation facilities pursuant to the provisions of any ordinance of the City, as the same now exist or may hereafter be enacted or amended from time to time.

In-Lieu Fee Credits for Construction of Improvements.

Developer Construction of Facilities Exceeding Needs Related to Development Project. Whenever an applicant is required, as a condition of approval of a Development Permit, to construct any facility or improvement (or a portion thereof) described in the Development Impact Fee Schedule which facility or improvement is determined by the City to exceed the need therefor attributable to and reasonably related to the given development project, a reimbursement agreement with the applicant and a credit against the specific relevant fee which would otherwise be charged pursuant to this chapter on the development project, shall be offered. The credit shall be applied with respect to that portion of the improvement or facility which is attributable to and reasonably related to the need therefor caused by the development, and shall be determined, administered and processed in accordance with and subject to the provisions of this section. The amount to be reimbursed shall be that portion of the cost of the improvement or facility which exceeds the need therefor attributable to and reasonably related to the given development. The reimbursement agreement shall contain terms and conditions mutually agreeable to the developer and the City, and shall be approved by the City Council.

Site-Related Improvements. Credit shall not be given for site-related improvements, including, but not limited to, traffic signals, right-of-way dedications, or providing paved access to the property, which are specifically required by the project in order to serve it and do not constitute facilities or improvements specified in the Development Impact Fee Schedule.

Determination of Credit. The developer seeking credit and/or reimbursement for construction of improvements or facilities, or dedication of land or rights-of-way, shall submit such documentation, including without limitation, engineering drawings, specifications, and construction cost estimates, and utilize such methods as may be appropriate and acceptable to the City Engineer to support the request for credit or reimbursement. The City Engineer shall determine credit for construction of improvements or facilities based upon either these cost estimates or upon alternative engineering criteria and construction cost estimates if he or she determines that such estimates submitted by the developer are either unreliable or inaccurate. The City Engineer shall determine whether facilities or improvements are eligible for credit or reimbursement.

Time for Making Claim for Credit. Any claim for credit must be made no later than the application for a building permit. Any claim not so made shall be deemed waived.

Transferability of Credit—Council Approval. Credits shall not be transferable from 1 project or development to another without the approval of the City Council.

Appeal of Determinations of City Engineer. Determinations made by the City Engineer pursuant to the provisions of this section may be appealed by filing a written request with the City Clerk, together with a fee established by resolution of the City Council, within 10 calendar days of the determination of the City Engineer. The appeal shall be conducted in accordance with the applicable sections of Chapter 4.36 of the Desert Hot Springs Municipal Code, as may be amended. The decision of the Hearing Officer shall be final.

Except for the first year the ordinance codified in this chapter is in effect, no later than 6 months following the end of each fiscal year, the City Manager shall prepare a report for the City Council identifying the balance of fees in the various funds established pursuant to Section 17.144.050, the facilities constructed, and the facilities to be constructed. In preparing the report, the City Manager shall adjust the estimated costs of the public improvements in accordance with the Engineering Construction Cost Index as published by Engineering News Record for the elapsed time period from the previous July 1st, or the date that the cost estimate was developed. The annual report shall also include a review of the administrative overhead charge.

At a noticed public hearing, the City Council shall review the report and the development impact fees to determine whether the fee amounts continue to be reasonably related to the impact of development and whether the described public facilities are still needed. The Council may revise the development impact fees to include additional projects not previously foreseen as being needed.

The report prepared by the City Manager and its review by the City Council, as well as any findings thereon, shall be subject to the provisions of California Government Code Section 66001(d), to the extent applicable (which shall be controlling in the event of any conflict).