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Weddington council raises select development and appeal fees; adopts amended fee schedule
Summary
Council adopted an amended fee schedule that increases several developer‑ and permit‑related fees (including the conditional‑zoning base fee, appeals and final plat per‑lot charges) so staff time is better covered; council will review the results in six months.
At a public hearing the town’s planning staff described proposed changes to the town fee schedule intended to better align permit and subdivision fees with staff time and project scale. Staff noted the town collected roughly $40,000 last year in zoning and subdivision fees and proposed adding acreage‑based scaling to conditional zoning fees and separating pool permits from accessory‑structure permits to track workload.
Council members argued fees should more closely compensate planning staff, especially because large subdivisions require significant technical review. Specific adjustments the council agreed to and adopted during the meeting included raising the conditional zoning application base from $1,500 to $2,000, increasing the appeal fee (appeal of zoning officer decision to Board of Adjustment) from $500 to $1,000, and raising the final plat submittal fee for minor subdivisions from $55 per lot to $85 per lot. Staff said these adjustments reflect work that escalates with project scale and that larger projects will pay proportionally higher fees under the acreage formula.
The council voted to adopt the fee schedule as amended and asked staff to track revenues and staff time and to revisit fees in six months to see whether adjustments remain warranted. The vote to adopt the amended fee schedule was unanimous.
Council also confirmed adding the FY24/25 audit contract with Kendra Gangle (not to exceed $10,000) to the consent agenda; consent items were approved unanimously.
