Plan commission approves ordinance to reestablish park impact fee after consultant presentation; members and public raise timing concerns

The Town of Maryville Plan Commission voted 6-0 on Feb. 18 to forward Ordinance 25-02, a proposed amendment to the municipal code to reestablish a park infrastructure impact fee, to the Town Council for final action.

The proposed ordinance would raise the residential park impact fee from about $475 to a recommended $1,582, according to a consultant who presented the report. Haggi Arshami, principal of Arsh Group, told the commission the study follows state procedures and that the town’s park and recreation assets used in the calculation now total about $27,000,000. “We have been preparing these impact fee reports for the last 20 years,” Arshami said.

The ordinance is a land‑use action that the commission must certify as consistent with the town’s comprehensive plan before the council may adopt it. Commissioners discussed the ordinance’s timing and implementation language at length: staff and legal said state law requires any newly adopted fee to take effect six months after the council adopts the ordinance. Commission members sought clearer language that the “existing” fee will remain in force until March 31, 2025, and that the higher fee would begin six months after council adoption so the town cannot immediately begin charging the new rate.

Commissioner Brian Dearing and other members repeatedly clarified that the statutory timeline will create a gap between March 31, 2025 (when existing fee language expires as written in the draft), and the date six months after council action. Planning staff confirmed the draft ordinance already references the six‑month implementation period required by state law. Staff also said the fee applies to new construction and is paid by developers, not by existing homeowners. The commission added wording to specify “existing fees will remain in effect until 03/31/2025” and noted the new rates will take effect six months after council adoption.

A member of the public, Brian Messart, urged the commission to avoid a timing gap and asked how much revenue might be lost between April and the later effective date; staff declined to estimate lost revenue during the meeting and said Sheila Shine, the town’s building and planning director, would be available to answer questions after the meeting. “If this costs us a couple thousand dollars, tens of thousand dollars, or hundreds of thousands of dollars, it’s really kind of unacceptable,” Messart said.

After discussion and a public comment period, the commission took a roll‑call vote. The motion to approve the ordinance as amended was moved and seconded on the floor and passed with six ayes.

The ordinance will now go to the Town Council; staff said council review and formal adoption will set the eventual effective date (six months after council adoption). The commission also noted the action is part of a scheduled five‑year update to park and recreation planning and that Taghi/ Haggi Arshami is working on the town’s park master plan.

What happens next: the commission certified consistency with the comprehensive plan and forwarded the ordinance to the Town Council. Staff advised builders and applicants that, pending council action, the town may not be able to charge the higher fee until the six‑month statutory period has elapsed.