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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - June 14, 2005 SSCITY OF LODI INFORMAL INFORMATIONAL MEETING "SHIRTSLEEVE" SESSION CARNEGIE FORUM, 305 WEST PINE STREET TUESDAY, JUNE 14, 2005 An Informal Informational Meeting ("Shirtsleeve" Session) of the Lodi City Council was held Tuesday, June 14, 2005, commencing at 7:04 a.m. A. ROLL CALL Present: Council Members — Hansen, Hitchcock, Johnson, and Mounce Absent: Council Members — Mayor Beckman Also Present: City Manager King, City Attorney Schwabauer, and Deputy City Clerk Taylor B. TOPIC(S) B-1 "Regional Transportation Impact Fee Update" City Manager King reported that one of the original requirements toward initiating Measure K funding in 1990 was that a Regional Transportation Impact Fee (RTIF) be implemented to balance out transportation impacts and improvements on new development as well as existing residents. He explained that a policy committee was created and is currently finalizing a recommendation for a fee structure and schedule for collection and distribution of fees to be presented to the San Joaquin Council of Governments (SJCOG) at its regular meeting of June 23, 2005. He stated that following the acceptance of the recommendation by SJCOG, the topic will be brought before all cities in the region for acceptance and approval of the proposed fee structure. Further, he shared that Council Member Hansen has been representing the City as a member of the policy committee. Mr. King stated that initial meetings of the committee resulted in a lack of agreement or recommendation regarding fees, projects, and how dollars should be spent. City managers met to discuss the committee's main topic of concern which was the dissemination of funds. A unified proposal of compromise was presented by the dty managers which ultimately resulted in the committee members returning to discussions and producing three models and the RTIF policy committee recommendation for SJCOG (filed). Council Member Hansen explained that the RTIF policy committee is comprised of 25 members representing different public entities and special interest groups, and a regional perspective and compromise were key elements in reaching an agreeable proposal. He shared that the highly debated topic of controlling funds, voted upon by members, will be a recommendation that individual cities be responsible for collection and administration. All communities have reported experiencing increases in traffic and decreases in the conditions of roadways because of the number of people moving into the area. He noted that Stockton will be implementing an optional higher fee than that being recommended by the committee. The proposed RTIF will directly impact the affordability of new homes, businesses, and industry in the area, but will address only a portion of the funding needs necessary for transportation projects in the region. He stated that the Sierra Club does not support the committee -approved proposal, but believes the implementation of the RTIF will increase the likelihood of continuing Measure K, which, although effective until 2011, will be on the ballot for renewal during the regular election in 2006. In response to Mayor Pro Tempore Hitchcock, Council Member Hansen explained that the implementation of the RTIF will provide additional funding for projects, which are currently being supported by a variety of funding sources including Measure K. In reviewing the final three options for committee consideration, the majority of members voted in favor of Option 3, proposing a fund structure for 75% of fees to cities, 5% to transportation, 10% to the County, and 10% to mainline highway projects throughout the region. Continued June 14, 2005 Richard Prima, Public Works Director, reviewed a map detailing roadways and highways within San Joaquin County, which are targeted as projects proposed within the $5 billion regional area project list. He explained that of the proposed projects, $3 billion would cover the state highway system, $1 billion would be for interchange projects, $1 billion would encompass local roadways, and approximately $155 million would be for transit projects. He stated that two years ago a nexus study was initiated in an attempt to put together a basis for a regional fee, which was estimated to be over $5,000 per building unit; however, the study was not completed due to conflicts over the structure and implementation of the program. Mr. Prima reported that a new nexus study would need to be completed to form the foundation for the standard fee rates, with individual jurisdictions using the results of the universal nexus study as the basis for adopting fees. He explained that transportation funding is a fairly complex issue, in which Lodi has traditionally relied on state, federal, and local funding, primarily from Measure K. The City's goal projection list is a compilation of all projects targeted for completion over the course of the next 30 years. In past years some projects were placed on hold until funding could be secured. Federal transportation bills are passed every five to six years and the shift of funding into transit or highways is unpredictable. State funding is now directly allocated to SJCOG for roadway projects, and Caltrans takes its dollars for maintenance first, leaving the City short. Given the current State budget deficit, even these funds have been detained and projects are falling farther behind. In response to Council Member Johnson, Andrew Chesley, Deputy Executive Director for SJCOG, acknowledged that anticipated growth estimates by cities and the Qbunty are approximately 30% to 40% higher when compared to SJCOG estimates, which are supported by the University of the Pacific (UOP) Business Forecasting Center estimates. He shared that cities and the County look at their sphere of influence and current growth in estimating future growth, while SJCOG and UOP look at the entire region, long-term historical trends, and review state and other source projects to arrive at a lower and more conservative overall growth rate. SJCOG makes a series of growth projections every two years for all of San Joaquin County, taking into account individual projects from the cities and the County. For example, over the past two years Stockton has experienced a very high growth rate while Tracy has implemented a growth control measure, supporting the idea that using short-term history is not always the best measure in regard to projecting growth rates. In answer to Mayor Pro Tempore Hitchcock, Mr. Chesley reported that since Measure K was initiated in 1990, local fees were implemented by two cities in San Joaquin County; however, the intent of the measure was that cities apply local transportation impact fees and that all cities implement am RTIF. During the past few years, several attempts were made for a regional consensus, but without models or templates available for review and restructure to fit the needs of the region, no progress was made. With the recent development of a county -wide model program for San Joaquin County, the policy committee is a unique leader in the development of RTIF. With the passing of Measure K and the San Joaquin County half cent sales tax for transportation services, San Joaquin County has been able to move forward with 14 highway -related projects during the past 15 years. In comparison, Stanislaus County, which does not have either of these funding sources, has not placed itself in a position to be able to capture transportation dollars from the state or federal government and has had only three projects. Implementing RTIF is expected to better position San Joaquin County to capture dollars from other sources for projects and improvements. The state and federal governments are interested in providing a portion of funding for projects of approximately 25%, but are not interested in investing 80% to 100%. San Joaquin (bunty will be in a better position to capture the funding support with the implementation of RTIF. 2 Continued June 14, 2005 Council Member Hansen stated that discussion of a mechanism for reviewing and automatically changing the RTIF has been discussed and that the committee supports the administrative fee being just enough to cover city costs without surcharges. He reported that the policy committee will present the final report and recommendations to the SJCOG board on June 23, 2005, and noted that he would be out of town and Mayor Pro Tempore Hitchcock will attend the meeting and vote in his absence. Following the nexus study and votes of approval from the Board of Supervisors and every city council in San Joaquin County, it is anticipated that SJCOG will approve and implement the RTIF effective January 1, 2006. Council Member Johnson reported that at a recent meeting of the San Joaquin Partnership, discussion centered on the possibility that the RTIF may negatively impact the good competitive a;onomic development edge currently being enjoyed throughout the region. Council Member Hansen commented that while the cost of housing, industry, and retail development would rise, perhaps the development transportation and visible improvements along highway interchanges may become an attractor for future development. He shared that there are public elected officials who have been very critical of the County's delay in adopting the RTIF because it was required as part of Measure K and many dollars have been lost. Council Member Mounce extended her appreciation to Council Member Hansen br his tireless efforts in representing Lodi in a professional manner while working on the policy committee. PUBLIC COMMENTS: 00 Myrna Wetzel stated that she was concerned about the auditing process and questioned whether or not it would be a part of the administrative fees, and what portion of the overall fees would be for the audit. City Manager King shared that the auditing cost may be made a part of the administrative fees, and if so the percentage would be approximately 1.50/6 to 2% of the amount collected. He commented that before administrative fees could be set a definition and line account of specific tasks included in the fees would have to be established to ensure the lowest possible administrative fees are charged in keeping with the policy committee's direction. C. COMMENTS BY THE PUBLIC ON NON -AGENDA ITEMS None. D. ADJOURNMENT No action was taken by the City Council. The meeting was adjourned at 8:02 a.m. ATTEST: Jacqueline L. Taylor Deputy City Clerk AGENDA ITEM CITY OF LODI COUNCIL COMMUNICATION TM AGENDA TITLE: Regional Transportation Impact Fee (RTIF) Update MEETING DATE: June 14, 2005 (Shirtsleeve Session) PREPARED BY: Public Works Director RECOMMENDED ACTION: Information only. BACKGROUND INFORMATION: The San Joaquin Council of Governments and its members have been working on a Regional Transportation Impact Fee for some time now. The work is being guided by a Policy Committee consisting of elected officials, building industry and business representatives, and other public interest groups. The Policy Committee has agreed on a fee amount to carry forward in the process: Land Use Single Family Dwelling Units Multi Family Dwelling Units Retail Office & Service Commercial Manufacturing & Logistics Fee $ 2,500.00 per unit $1,500.00 per unit $ 1.00 per square foot $ 1.25 per square foot $ 0.75 per square foot The next steps in the process are to refine the fee program administration and the project list. A nexus study will also need to be completed before the actual adoption of the fee. The agenda for the June 8, 2005 Policy Committee is attached as background information, along with the draft project list from an earlier meeting that is referred to in the agenda. Staff will update Council on the results of the meeting at the Shirtsleeve Session and engage the Council in discussion on the fee program issues and its relationship to Measure K and renewal efforts. Richard C. Prima, Jr. Public Works Director RCPlpmf Attachments APPROVED: ! Blair King, t4 Manager JATRANSITICRTIF Update.doc 6/8/2005