Conway council adopts new formula for park open-space fee-in-lieu

Conway — The City Council on June 1 approved a revision to the city's unified development ordinance that changes how the fee in lieu for required park and open space is calculated.

Planning staff told the council the current method relies on appraisals that assume hypothetical future development and can produce widely varying, subjective fee estimates. "Because that methodology relies on a hypothetical future condition, the resulting fee can vary significantly from project to project and often cannot be determined early in the development review process," Planning staff said. Staff presented a side-by-side example showing a half-acre deficiency that under the existing formula produced $156,271, while the proposed fee-in-lieu method would come to $196,020 for that same deficiency.

The amendment does not change the amount of open space required or the city's authority to review alternatives, staff said; it changes only the method used to calculate the fee when a developer elects or is required to pay rather than provide dedicated open space on site. Under the new approach, fees are standardized by assigning dollar values to active and passive open space and applying those values to the deficient acreage.

Councilmember Miss Hardwick moved to approve final reading of the ordinance; the motion was seconded and the council voted unanimously to adopt the change. Staff said the clearer, formula-based calculation could make fees more predictable and may encourage developers to provide on-site open space when the formula produces higher fees for larger developments.

The ordinance will replace the appraisal-based calculation with the staff-proposed formula; planning commission involvement and council review remain part of the approval pathway for requests that seek reduced fees or alternate forms of mitigation.