Roswell committee approves transmittal of annual impact-fee report; staff previews fee study and credits policy

The Roswell Mayor and Council committee voted unanimously June 24 to transmit the city’s 2025 Capital Improvements Element and annual impact-fee financial report to the Georgia Department of Community Affairs (DCA) and the Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC) for review.

The report summarizes impact fees collected, encumbered and spent and lists capital projects eligible to be funded with development impact fees. “Development fee impact fees are a one-time payment for growth-related infrastructure,” Michelle Alexander, Roswell’s community development director, said in presenting the item.

Why it matters: the transmittal keeps Roswell in compliance with state rules that govern impact-fee reporting and preserves the city’s qualified local government status, staff said. Alexander told the committee the city also aligned reporting with a new calendar-year fiscal cycle and added a six-month reporting window so future reports are on a single 12-month basis.

Key details and discussion: Alexander said the combined expenditures reported for the covered period were “a little over a million dollars” and that the fund balance as of December 2024 was about $5.8 million; she added that the city has generated about $9 million in impact fees since 2015. Transportation and the fire department removed a few projects from the CIE list and added items such as vehicle replacements; the community work program additions were facility-services master-plan items and preparation work tied to the North Fulton Comprehensive Transportation Plan.

Councilmembers focused discussion on credits for redevelopment and how credits are calculated. Jackie (staff member) explained that redevelopment credits are applied to square footage that previously paid impact fees: “we would give them credit for the square footage of the commercial that was existing. Anything over and above that, they would have to pay the impact fees for…,” Jackie said. Alexander and councilmembers discussed how the city reviews credits if the earlier development paid fees at older rates and whether the city should adjust credits to account for inflation or technological changes in infrastructure costs.

Alexander said a consultant is conducting an impact-fee study that will update formulas (fees by use type and square footage surrogates) and that staff expect recommendations that some fees will increase because many fees have not been raised since 2015.

Actions and next steps: Councilmember William Morthland moved to approve transmitting the report; Councilmember Sarah Beeson seconded. The committee voted unanimously to transmit the CIE and annual report to DCA and ARC for review. Staff said, following external review, the city will bring adoption items back by the October 31 deadline for maintaining qualified local government status.

Context and limits: Alexander said DCA requires annual financial and capital improvement reporting but that listing a project on the CIE does not obligate the city to fund it with impact fees. The presentation included examples of encumbrances, credits, and the distinction between capital-improvement (project) lists and the activity-based community work program.

What to watch: staff will return with the consultant’s impact-fee study and recommended fee updates, and the city expects to discuss formulas, assumed needs, and recommended fee levels at future committee or impact-fee committee meetings.