West Bend City seeks consultant to set park impact fees; proposes staged increases to developer tree fee

The West Bend City Park and Recreation Commission on Feb. 26 agreed to move forward with plans to hire a consultant to determine appropriate park impact fees for new residential development and to update an out‑of‑date ordinance governing those fees.

Mike (committee member) told the commission the city administration and development director participated in recent discussions and that the city would likely pay the consultant from contingency funds in the administration budget, not from the parks operating budget. “What we're going to look at doing is hiring a consultant to help us determine what the proper impact fee would be,” he said, describing a study that would inventory existing park property and facilities, forecast population and recreation needs 10–30 years out, and translate those findings into per‑unit charges.

Why it matters: impact fees affect how much new residential development contributes to parks and recreation capacity. Updating the fee structure and the governing ordinance could shift cost burdens away from taxpayers and toward growth that increases demand for parks.

The consultant will also help draft ordinance language and the commission expects to involve the city attorney to ensure statutory and drafting requirements are met. Mike said the commission is considering including inflation clauses so fees do not remain static for decades.

Commissioners heard that the city previously used a regional planning partner, SewerPAC, for earlier park and open‑space planning but no longer participates in that consortium. Staff said the consultant scope may therefore be broader and could include other development impact fees so the city pays one consultant fee rather than many separate studies.

Tree program changes: the commission also reviewed three tree‑planting programs and a proposal to raise the developer‑paid street‑tree fee known locally as the "tree shy" program. The three programs are (1) the developer/new‑home owner street‑tree planting charge (the "tree shy" fee), (2) tree plantings tied to road reconstruction (paid from operating forestry funds), and (3) a free replacement street‑tree program for residents.

Mike noted the $350 tree‑shy fee has been in place since 2003 and that recent low bids for tree planting have approached $535 per tree. He said the administration is proposing staged increases in 2026 and 2029 with automatic annual adjustments thereafter so the fee keeps pace with costs rather than waiting decades between increases. The city administrator supports treating the charge as a development impact fee rather than taking the cost from the tax base.

Next steps: staff said the commission will consider the consultant recommendation and proposed fee schedule at its March meeting; if the commission approves, the proposal will then go to the common council for final action.