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Residents call ADU impact fees ‘double dipping’; commission and staff weigh legal options
Summary
A resident called the city’s ADU impact-fee treatment "double dipping," pressing commissioners to lower fees or establish waivers for ADUs used for affordable housing; staff said fee reallocation would require consultant-backed studies unless ADUs are restricted to affordable use.
At the January meeting residents and commissioners pressed the city to revisit how it charges impact fees for accessory dwelling units (ADUs), telling the commission that current fee treatment discourages ADU construction and undermines affordability goals.
Resident Stephanie Jones said homeowners who previously paid impact fees for their primary parcel are being charged again when they add an ADU, calling the practice “double dipping.” Jones said higher fees — she cited an example of roughly $20,000 — defeat the purpose of using ADUs to increase affordable housing supply.
City staff and commissioners acknowledged the concern but said legal and technical constraints limit immediate administrative action. An unidentified staff member noted that to reallocate impact fees among uses in a manner that would withstand legal scrutiny, the city would need to reengage its impact-fee consultant to produce a study justifying the distinctions; that approach was discussed when the council adopted the recent impact-fee ordinance.
Staff also pointed out that the land-development code already contains provisions to waive impact fees for single-family dwellings used for affordable housing, and commissioners discussed mechanisms — restrictive covenants or contractual commitments — that could enable targeted fee relief while protecting the city from legal challenge.
Commissioners asked staff to provide the communications exchanged with the resident and to return with options for reducing or waiving fees for ADUs specifically tied to affordable-housing commitments.
What’s next: Staff will share the file of communications with the resident and return to the commission with legal options and any consultant-cost implications for revising the impact-fee allocation.
