Hooper approves grant-funded parks impact-fee study, $88,000 grant with $17,600 local match

Hooper City will begin an update to its parks impact-fee facility plan after council discussion on Thursday.

The city has not updated its parks impact-fee study since 2003. City staff and the city engineer explained that state rules require an impact-fee facility plan and a corresponding impact-fee analysis before a jurisdiction may change developer impact fees. The update will inform any future per-lot or per-parcel fee calculations.

Funding and timeline: Mayor Sherry Bingham told the council the city received an $88,000 grant through Utah Outdoor Recreation with a $17,600 local match. The project will be publicly noticed; once the study and the subsequent impact-fee analysis are complete, the council will hold a public hearing before considering fee changes.

Why it matters: Updating the impact-fee study will let Hooper align park-fee charges with recent construction costs and growth since 2003. City staff and council members said the city may be leaving uncollected revenue on the table because the last update is two decades old.

Next steps: The city will notice the study, hire a consultant or proceed under the grant terms, complete the impact-fee facility plan and then the impact-fee analysis. The council will schedule a public hearing when the analysis is complete so residents can review proposed changes and possible per-parcel or commercial fee amounts.

Provenance: The council discussed the study and grant during budget meetings earlier in the year and at this meeting; the grant amount and local match were read into the record by the mayor.