City of Gainesville - File #: 211239.

• File #: 211239.
• Version: 1
• Type: Discussion Item
• Status: Passed
• File created: 5/13/2022
• In control: City Manager
• On agenda: 6/2/2022
• Final action: 6/2/2022
• Title: Department of Sustainable Development Fee Study Update (B) This is a request for the City Commission to hear a presentation from Berry Dunn McNeil & Parker, LLC and provide direction to staff.

Date	Ver.	Action By	Action	Result
6/2/2022	1	City Commission	Approved as Recommended	Pass

Title

Department of Sustainable Development Fee Study Update (B)

This is a request for the City Commission to hear a presentation from Berry Dunn McNeil & Parker, LLC and provide direction to staff.

Explanation

The City of Gainesville retained Berry Dunn McNeil & Parker, LLC (BerryDunn) to conduct a Permit Fee Study for the Department of Sustainable Development. The focus of the project was reviewing all fees for services provided by the Department of Sustainable Development’s Building and Planning Divisions in order to better understand the current cost of service delivery at the aggregate as well as individual process level and to ensure that the Department is able to maintain and in some areas enhance the provision of service into the future. The study findings were presented to the Commission at their June 17, 2021 meeting.

The Department’s overall cost recovery rate for the services analyzed for this study was 55.3%. The study encompassed two divisions that provide fee-applicable services offered by the Department; after identifying and assigning revenue and expense, their specific cost-recovery rates were as follows: Building Division - 73.1%, and Planning Division - 9.9%.

At the June meeting, the City Commission approved a cost recovery policy for building and planning fees to meet cost-of-service goals and directed staff to prepare a proposed fee increase proposal for City Commission consideration. Staff retained Berry Dunn McNeil & Parker, LLC. to prepare the fee schedule update. The recommendations are contained within the attached report and are summarized as follows:

1.  Approve a one-time 15% increase in building and planning division fees. Proposed fee levels reflect the desired revenue gains in order to achieve the Division’s cost recovery targets for future fiscal years. This represents an approximate $9 increase ($60 current, $69 proposed) for most baseline electrical/plumbing/gas/mechanical permits.

2.  Consider adopting fees fo...