Consultant proposes data‑driven parkland fees: $729 land in‑lieu and $1,411 park development fee per unit

Paul Howard, a consultant working with the city’s parks and recreation master plan, presented a data‑driven methodology to update Navasota’s parkland dedication ordinance and fee schedule. Howard said the current ordinance undervalues land and relies on outdated assumptions; using Grimes County certified tax‑roll data and GIS parcel averaging, he estimated market value at about $25,236 per acre and proposed a fee‑in‑lieu of $729 per dwelling unit. "The new fee we're recommending is, based on this methodology, would be, $729 per dwelling unit," Howard told the council.

Howard also presented a park development‑cost analysis based on a sample of built projects across Texas and estimated development costs at roughly $494,000 to $514,000 per acre. He recommended a policy discount of 10% on the raw per‑acre development cost, yielding a park development fee recommendation of $1,411 per dwelling unit and a combined per‑unit impact of $2,140. Howard said staff should review the fee schedule every three years and extend the fee‑expenditure deadline to 10 years so collected funds can be spent without premature refunds. The council asked questions about school district parks, credits for private/HOA parks, and whether developers next to existing parks could seek waivers or credits; staff said credits and PUD negotiations remain options under the proposed approach.