Sammamish Council hears lengthy debate on scaled impact-fee proposal; hearing continued to May 19

City staff presented a proposed update to Sammamish's impact-fee program May 5 that would replace per-unit charges with fees that scale by square footage, a change intended to comply with recent state guidance requiring fees that reflect unit size. Senior management analyst Evan Fischer and Director David Pile told the council the study yields recommended per-square-foot rates: $3.13 per square foot for parks and $7.44 per square foot for transportation. The consultant recommended a minimum and maximum based on occupancy data; staff recommended assessing up to 100% of the maximum calculated fees.

Staff also proposed policy adjustments: an 80% reduction of impact fees for residential units affordable at 0–60% AMI and a 50% reduction for units affordable at 61–80% AMI; removal of a proposed exemption for accessory dwelling units based on legal advice; and continued exemption of ordinary additions while requiring fees on net square footage in teardown-and-rebuild scenarios. Legal and consulting staff discussed defensibility under state law (the statute allows square footage, bedroom count, or trips as methods) and noted tradeoffs between implementability and technical defensibility.

Councilmembers raised practical and policy concerns: Councilmember Michael Boyer asked for estimates of foregone revenue from affordability discounts and how the city would replace that revenue; staff said historic affordable housing production in Sammamish has been small and that any transfers would come from available general-fund resources. Deputy Mayor Debbie Treen recommended slowing the process to ensure robust public input and asked whether trip generation or service-area approaches would be more defensible; staff and legal counsel said square footage is administrable and legally acceptable, but other jurisdictions have used trip-generation methods.

Members also discussed whether lower fees should be offered in focused subareas (town center or neighborhood centers) to encourage growth there; staff said the city currently lacks sufficient multi-family development to create a legally defensible separate service-area calculation but suggested a future review tied to subarea planning.

During the public hearing, Paul Stickney asked for a more granular fee schedule and urged the council to extend review time. Given the volume of comment and technical questions, the council agreed to continue the public hearing to May 19, 2026, to receive additional input and refine code language. Staff said next steps include adoption of a resolution for the study, an ordinance updating Sammamish Municipal Code 21.06.045, and a resolution amending the city's fee schedule if council direction is provided.