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HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem #07 Past Due Development Review Fees (2) SHUFFIELDI kAVMAN AGENDA ITEM COVER SHEET Meeting Date: October 16, 2012 Item # 7 Reviewed By: Contact Name: Scott A. Cookson, Department Director: City Attorney Contact Number: 407 - 581 -9715 City Manager: Q 4 1/ . Subject: Past Due Development Review Fees Background Summary: The Land Development Code authorizes the City to charge applicants and property owners certain development review fees incurred by the City for the review of development projects. Issue: Should the Commission accept the recommendation of staff and authorize the City Manager and City Attorney to negotiate terms of settlement agreements for the reduction of amounts due and /or payment terms related to payment of past due development review fees by applicants and property owners? Recommendations The City Manager and the City Attorney recommend that the Commission authorize the City Manager and /or the City Attorney to negotiate with the respective applicants and owners for payment of past due development review fees and to enter into settlement agreements for the reduction of amounts due and /or payment terms, as needed. Attachments: None Financial Impact: Type of Item: ❑ Public Hearing For Clerk's Dept Use: ❑ Ordinance First Reading ® Consent Agenda ❑ Ordinance First Reading ❑ Public Hearing ❑ Resolution ❑ Regular Agenda ❑ Commission Approval ® Discussion & Direction ❑ Original Document/Contract Attached for Execution by City Clerk ❑ Original Document/Contract Held by Department for Execution Reviewed by City Attorney ® N/A Reviewed by Finance Dept. ❑ N/A Reviewed by ( ) 1 I N/A S HUFFIELDI ,OW ,OWN4 A MEMORANDUM CLIENT - MATTER NUMBER 06286 -0001 TO: The Honorable Mayor and City Commissioners FROM: Scott A. Cookson, City Attorney DATE: October 10, 2012 RE: Past Due Development Review Fees Staff Report ISSUE Should the Commission accept the recommendation of staff and authorize the City Manager and /or the City Attorney to negotiate terms of settlement agreements related to payment of past due development review fees by applicants and property owners? BACKGROUND /DISCUSSION Article I, Section 1 -12 of the Land Development Code ( "LDC ") authorizes the City to require payment for the costs the City incurs for the review of applications related to land development projects to ensure legal compliance with the provisions of the City Code and payment for legal, consultant, engineering and advertising fees and costs ( "Fees "). The LDC provides that the applicant for the project ( "Applicant "), the owner of the property that is the subject of the application at the time the application is submitted ( "Owner ") and the current owner of the subject property ( "Current Owner ") are jointly and severally liable for payment of the Fees. An invoice for the Fees is sent to the Applicant and within thirty days of receipt, payment is due to the City. In the event that payment is not made within forty -five days from the date of the invoice, the City Finance Department is authorized to apply the review deposit to the outstanding balance. Pursuant to Section 1- 12.D(3) of the City Code, if the outstanding balance is not paid within sixty days from the date of the invoice, the City Finance Manager is authorized to take all appropriate action to collect the monies due, including filing a Notice of Lien on the subject property. Over the past several years, a number of Applicants have failed to make payment for the Fees incurred. Approximately One Hundred Seventy Thousand Dollars ($170,000.00) is owed to the City. In an attempt to collect the Fees, letters were recently sent to each Applicant, Owner and New Owner requesting payment and informing the recipients of the authority of the City to place a lien on the subject property. A number of Applicants and Owners have contacted the City seeking additional information regarding the Fees, requesting a reduction of the Fees and requesting a payment plan to allow for payment of the Fees over a period of time. RECOMMENDATION The City Manager and the City Attorney recommend that the Commission authorize the City Manager and /or the City Attorney to negotiate with Applicants, Owners and New Owners related to payment of the Fees and to enter into settlement agreements for the reduction of the amount due and /or payment terms, as needed.