Staff Report for 2-7-23 Fee Hearing

Home Browse Search

COMMUNITY PLANNING  BUILDING INSPECTION  PLAN REVIEW  ADMINISTRATION  PERMIT SERVICES  CODE ENFORCEMENT KITTITAS COUNTY COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT SERVICES 411 N. Ruby St., Suite 2, Ellensburg, WA 98926 CDS@CO.KITTITAS.WA.US Office (509) 962-7506 Fax (509) 962-7682 “Building Partnerships – Building Communities” February 7, 2023 To: Board of County Commissioners From: Dan Carlson, AICP Community Development Services Director RE: Proposed 2023 Community Development Services Fee Schedule Staff Report Introduction Staff has updated the Community Development Services (CDS) fee model with current department staff, expenditures, and valuation data to determine the proposed CDS fees for 2023. These fees are divided into three categories – Building Permit Fees for New Construction (Exhibit A & B), Fees for Building Fixtures (Exhibit C), and Fees for Planning Services (Exhibit D). Building Permit Fees for New Construction Building permit fees for new construction would continue to be determined based upon a multiplier (Exhibit A), a model enabling the user to determine how much service will cost for plans examination and building inspection given total construction valuation for the project. This multiplier is based upon the International Code Council (ICC) suggested model, and upon the most current published Building Valuation Data table of the International Code Council Building Safety Journal (Exhibit B). This is a national “average” construction cost per square foot for new construction. This fee model simplifies the permit cost process and includes foundation work, structural and non-structural components, plumbing, mechanical and interior finish. The ICC model allows CDS to adjust permit fees based on annual construction activity and the desired level of service determined by the Board of County Commissione rs. The multiplier works as follows: • Projected gross construction valuation for the coming year is divided into the projected budget for the coming year to create a multiplier. • The multiplier is then used against the square foot cost of the construction project estimated by using the most current August issue of the Building Safety Journal Building Valuation Data sheet published by the International Code Council (Exhibit B). • This produces a permit fee adequate to process the building permit. This cost includes all plumbing and mechanical associated with new construction. • A five percent (5%) technology and equipment surcharge is added to permit fees to cover the cost of repair and replacement of vehicles and equipment needed to service the building permits. Between September 30, 2019 and September 30, 2022, the average annual construction valuation within Kittitas County was $190,691,601. Staff used this number for the projected gross construction valuation for 2023. The anticipated building division budget after removing individual fee revenues is $1,293,146. The $190,691,601 annual construction valuation is divided into the anticipated $1,293,146 budget, which produces a multiplier of 0.0068. This multiplier is then applied to the construction project valuation to