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City will end automatic downtown fee waivers after 15 years, staff says
Summary
City staff told the Planning and Zoning Commission that City Council voted to stop automatically waiving construction permit fees in the downtown neighborhood empowerment zone after more than 15 years; planning staff will continue to waive fees for site plans, plats and zone changes and property owners can seek grants or incentives.
City staff told the Friendswood Planning and Zoning Commission on Oct. 10 that City Council recently voted to cease the automatic waiving of construction and building permit fees in the downtown neighborhood empowerment zone, a program that had been in place since the district was created in 2008.
Speaker 4 said the neighborhood empowerment zone originally offered incentives in the form of waived permitting and development fees for qualifying projects, depending on zone A or zone B and whether downtown improvements (brick sidewalks, street poles, benches) were installed. With TxDOT completing sidewalks and light poles, "this is to cease waiving any and all fees," Speaker 4 said, adding that planning staff will still waive fees for site plans, plats and zone changes and that property owners can pursue grants and incentives (including CEDC opportunities).
Staff said the change returns the city to collecting most construction permit fees after more than 15 years. The commission received the update; the Council action occurred at Monday's meeting, outside this commission session.
