Commissioners review draft transportation impact fee; developers urge lower rates or incentives

The Okeechobee County Board of County Commissioners spent substantial time reviewing a revised draft transportation impact fee prepared by Kimley‑Horn and presented by county staff. The consultant and staff provided two cost scenarios based on differing interest/discount rates for the gas‑tax credit (4.7% and 2.75%). Staff asked the board for policy direction on unit choices for selected land uses, the interest rate used for crediting, and whether certain land uses should remain in the fee schedule.

Jessica (county staff) described edits made from a prior draft: removal of land uses not in the county’s land‑development code, consolidation of single‑family house size categories to match the code minimum (1,000 sq. ft.), and a revised methodology that reduced fees by isolating local trips and refining external travel demand assumptions. She said the difference in the chosen interest rate for the gas‑tax credit notably affects commercial fees; the draft provided both a 4.7% scenario (reflecting a recent county bond) and a 2.75% scenario (used by some neighboring counties), producing materially different fee totals.

Developers and site…