Non-residential uses now required to participate

New homes in Peachtree City will now be subject to a higher impact fee, but not the maximum amount that was originally under consideration by the city council.

Instead the city will assess 75 percent of that maximum amount, totaling $2,599.83. Several homebuilders have petitioned the city to lower the amount based on the poor shape of the local homebuilding industry.

Council’s approval Thursday night requires the fees to be revisited in one year.

Impact fees are one-time charges assessed on each new home in the city. Council also voted Thursday to begin charging impact fees to all other new developments as well, ranging from office buildings to restaurants and other non-residential ventures. Those impact fees are based on the square footage of each development.

Based on current zoning, the city estimates it has approximately 1,375 homes remaining to be built, with the large majority being in the Wilksmoor Village area.

All told the city expects to get $6.8 million in impact fees to pay for an estimated $7 million in projects that will be necessary just to account for the remaining 1,375 homes coming to the city. The total estimate for those projects is $11 million, including $6.1 million for fire services, $4.1 million for parks and recreation, $500,000 for police services and $300,000 for library services.

City staff pointed out in a memo that without the new impact fees there would be more of a burden in property taxes to fund the expansion of services.

Impact fees for non-residential buildings would be calculated as follows:

• Industrial uses would pay between 7.7 cents and 97.2 cents per square foot;

• Lodging uses would pay as low as $42.13 per room for a “business hotel” up to $299.52 per room for a regular motel;

• Recreational uses would pay between 15.4 cents per square foot for a racquet club up to $3,830 an acre for an amusement park;

• Institutional uses would pay between 21.7 cents per square foot for a church or synagogue up to $3.40 per square foot for a private school and $421.17 for a lodge/fraternal organization.

• Retail uses, charged mostly by the square foot, would range from 17.5 cents per square foot for a furniture store all the way up to $3.14 per square foot for a quality restaurant or a sit-down restaurant and $4.59 per square foot for a fast-food restaurant.

• Office uses would pay between $1.23 and $1.70 per square feet.

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