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Council delays transportation fee recalculation amid concerns about timing and business impacts
Summary
Staff proposed updated trip-generation numbers and a reallocation of transportation fees (holding total revenue constant), but councilors raised concerns about concurrent changes with a proposed public-safety surcharge. Council voted to table the transportation changes until after the public-safety decision.
City staff presented a recalculation of transportation/trip‑generation fees that uses updated Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) data and new land‑use categories. The staff analysis showed many nonresidential uses had been undercounted; to keep overall revenue neutral, the proposal reduces the per‑trip unit cost (from $0.38 to $0.25 for nonresidential in staff examples) while reallocating charges across land‑use categories.
Staff explained the methodology and gave examples: an 8‑pump gas station would generate many more adjusted daily trips and, under the recalculation, a medical office and several restaurant types would land in different trip categories. Staff emphasized the city's code allows customers to appeal assigned trip estimates. Councilors and members of the public raised worries that recalculation at the same time as a potential public‑safety surcharge would cause confusion and steep one‑time changes for some businesses; several councilors suggested phasing or staging the approach. One council motion to table the transportation ordinance until after the public‑safety surcharge decision passed, leaving the recalculation for later consideration and additional outreach.
Staff said the revision was overdue and aimed to make allocations more representative of actual trip generation; the ordinance change would require future work to notify and process appeals for approximately under 100 affected accounts.
