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Board endorses one-year interlocal approach for municipal planning reviews and requests rate study
Summary
Holmes County commissioners agreed to move forward with a one-year mutual-aid/interlocal arrangement for planning reviews, directing that fees come to the county and asking staff to return with a commercial fee rate study comparing surrounding counties.
The Holmes County Board agreed to proceed with a one-year interlocal arrangement to handle planning reviews for towns that lack their own planning authorities and asked staff to study commercial development fees in neighboring counties.
Staff explained the county has been performing planning reviews for several towns that do not have independent plans, an arrangement that has required county staff time and external engineering review. Speaker 3 described the proposed interlocal agreement as a temporary delegation that would allow the county to review applications while towns work toward establishing their own plans.
Why it matters: Commissioners said the county currently bears review costs that are not fully covered by fees. Speaker 5 put the policy question directly: “Developers should pay the development, not the county,” and urged a rate study to compare the county’s fees to those of surrounding jurisdictions.
Board action and next steps: Speaker 6 moved to proceed with a one-year mutual-aid/interlocal agreement under which the county would collect fees for planning reviews and to direct staff to prepare a rate study of commercial fees in surrounding counties. The motion was seconded and recorded as approved in the spoken record; the meeting transcript does not include a complete roll-call tally. Staff was directed to continue reviewing the agreement language and return with recommendations and any needed contract timelines.
Details and clarifications: The board discussed a pending development (described as a retail/operator project requiring DEP permits) that is time-sensitive; commissioners asked the county’s planning staff to process that application so developers could meet state permitting deadlines. The draft interlocal agreement discussed a three-year term with a one-year renewal option, but the board instructed staff to proceed with an initial one-year arrangement pending review and a possible transition to municipal control in future terms.
The board also discussed potentially increasing fees and asked staff to bring back a rate study for commercial development to inform future fee-setting.
