Typical House Will Cost $5,000 More in Flagler Beach as City Approves Series of New Impact Fees

It’ll cost builders $5,000 more to build the typical 1,500 to 2,000-square foot house in in Flagler Beach, a cost that will be passed down to buyers of new homes, as the city commission last week approved an increase in water and sewer impact fees and instituted new impact fees for fire, police, the library and parks and recreation.

The impact fees go in effect on Oct. 1.




The new fees almost double what builders were paying until new. The city’s impact fees have not been increased in 14 years. But even with the increases in water and sewer fees, the new schedule falls short of keeping up with inflation. had it done so, the water and sewer fees would have been higher than they will be come Oct. 1. That’s a potential headache for the city as the cost of infrastructure continues to surge, and shortfalls have to be made up somewhere. The city is building a new sewer plant.

The only difference between the first reading and second reading version of the ordinance is a clarifying sentence: a builder doesn’t have to pay the fee until a building permit is issued, though builders and developers have the option to pay the fees at any time before that point.

The 4-1 vote was the culmination of a nearly year-long process that included the required study justifying the increase in water and sewer fees, and the imposition of the new fees. Commissioner Rick Belhumeur opposed the measure, which passed on second reading at the commission’s April 11 meeting. Unlike similar, recent impact fee increases in Palm Coast and at the school board, the process in Flagler Beach was all but drama-free, drawing considerable discussion over the months but almost none on second reading, by which time all knots and kinks had been smoothed over.




Belhumeur opposed the measure because, contrary to his request and the city commission’s consensus, the latest version of the ordinance did not include transportation impact fees (what he and the city have referred to as “mobility impact fees”). That will be forthcoming, City Manager Dale Martin said. “I have asked Mr. Bise to provide a proposal to me for mobility fees as directed,” he said, referring to Carson Bise, president of TischlerBise, the Bethesda-based consultancy Flagler Beach government hired to prepare the required study. “Mr. Bise said he would prepare a proposal. I don’t have that proposal from him yet.”

There was some opposition from the Flagler County Home Builders Association. But it was relatively restrained. Local builders individually did not appear before the commission to oppose the increases or the new fees. (See: “Proposed 90% Increase in Flagler Beach Impact Fees Shadowed by Questions and a Looming Development” and “Flagler Beach’s Impact Fee Consultant Counters Home Builders Association’s Criticism Ahead of Commission Decision.”)

Impact fees are one-time levies imposed on new construction of most homes and businesses to defray the cost of the “impact” of new residents, on the assumption that new residents bring with them increased demands for services such as parks, fire, police and so on. School impact fees are levied separately. Builders pay the cost during construction, but typically pass it on to property owners. Impact fees are not levied on existing homes or businesses that change hands since those do not represent a net increase in population.




The city never had impact fees for police, fire, the library or parks and recreation. Revenue from those fees may not be used for operations such as salaries or recurring costs–only for capital expansions or new buildings. By approving the new fees, the city commission is implicitly saying that the city’s fire and police departments will at some point see new buildings, and that the library may see an expansion. But impact fees may also be used for additions (not replacements) to the city’s police and fire fleets, which will help buy new fire trucks and patrol cars.

The timing of the new fees is not coincidental. The city is hoping that Veranda Bay, the (eventually) huge subdivision along John Anderson Highway that has just begun springing new homes will annex into the city. If it does, the city’s size could potentially double by the time Veranda Bay has built out, though that’s not for many years yet. That would add significant demands on city services, including public safety. Hence the city’s planning for an eventual expansion of its fire and police services, plus parks and recreation.

Belhumeur is a champion of the Veranda Bay annexation. “I’m still disappointed that we don’t have the mobility and transportation included in this,” he said. “With not knowing whether that’s going to happen or not, I’m still going to vote no on this.”

Commissioner Eric Cooley wasn’t sure that the commission had a consensus to do that. “I know I would like a consensus that we do pursue mobility impact fees, because that’s pretty significant, especially when you’re getting into the multimodal stuff and everything,” he said. “As long as it’s not cost prohibitive.”

Martin said there had been a consensus for seeking the proposal. It will cost the city more to get the additional study from TischlerBise. As long as it’s under $20,000–the threshold beyond which any spending must get commission approval–the city manager would proceed with the study, without having to return the matter to the commission. But if the impact fee is in fact added to the schedule, then it would have to get commission approval.