Panama City adopts transportation impact fee ordinance, suspends collection pending further study

Panama City commissioners on July 22 adopted an ordinance creating a transportation impact fee program but agreed to suspend collection of the fees while the city completes a mobility plan and vets exemptions. The ordinance, numbered 32-56 and amending Chapter 113A of the Unified Land Development Code, was approved in a 4-1 roll call after months of public workshops and debate. Commissioner Granger moved to adopt the ordinance and immediately suspend collection pending further Commission review; Commissioner Street seconded. Commissioner Hughes cast the lone vote against the measure. Supporters of adopting the ordinance said the study and fee structure produce a tool to direct growth-related transportation funding instead of relying entirely on general-fund payouts or ad hoc developer negotiations. City staff and the city attorney explained the ordinance as drafted would set scheduled fee amounts but leave the collection at zero until a later date; staff recommended adopting the ordinance and delaying collection until Oct. 1, 2026, to avoid wasting the study’s work. Opponents and speakers at the public hearing, including representatives of the Central Panhandle Association of Realtors and local commercial brokers, warned the fees as proposed would raise housing and development costs in a fragile market and urged delay and additional community input. Commission debate focused on two practical steps: directing staff to prepare a mobility plan that identifies where fees would be applied and how revenues would be spent, and ensuring any fee implementation or exemptions return to the City Commission for public hearings before collection begins. City Attorney Mike Burke explained the ordinance process requires public hearings and planning-board review before a collection date could be changed. Commissioners emphasized that adopting the ordinance now preserves the city’s investment in the transportation-fee study, while suspending collection allows time to finalize mobility plans, evaluate exemptions and consider phased or percentage-based implementation. The commission’s motion and subsequent roll call produced a 4-1 approval and the ordinance title was read into the record. The adopted ordinance includes legislative findings and an adopted transportation impact fee study; it also replaces the city’s proportionate-share mitigation provisions with a fixed-fee approach. The commission directed staff to pursue public outreach and a mobility plan that will be used to revisit fee collection levels and geographic application. Looking ahead, the ordinance sets a framework for future public hearings if the commission decides to implement fees at any level; any decision to collect fees will require additional hearings before the planning board and the City Commission.