Pickerington Area Taxpayers Alliance

Experts pitch benefits of impact fees

By JACK SOWERS

A national legal expert on municipal impact fees presented a study to Pickerington City Council on Monday with a message that new developers in the city will soon have to ''pay as you grow.''

City officials have discussed the option of initiating an impact fee for developers. But legislation to do so has not been drafted as of Monday.

S. Mark White, an attorney with White and Smith, LLC of Kansas City, Mo., gave council members a 30-minute presentation that stressed community impact fees as a source of revenue to offset the financial strains associated with commercial and residential growth.

His presentation, designed to inform city officials of the benefits in initiating impact fees, coincided with the release of a $60,000 Pickerington Impact Fee Study conducted by TischlerBise, an economic planning consultant firm from Bethesda, Md.

The study projected that Pickerington's population, now estimated at more than 13,000 people, is likely to grow 57 percent over the next decade, passing the 20,000 mark by 2015.

TischlerBise conducted a similar survey for the city of Delaware five years ago.

White's law partner, Tyson Smith, helped draft impact-fee legislation for that community that has resulted in a nearly $3 million in revenue from 2001 to 2004.

White said that growing municipalities in more than 20 states are now extracting the one-time fees from new developers.

He said impact fees have not given pause to businesses or residential developers in those communities. ''Studies around the country have found it doesn't have to happen,'' White said.

Councilman Doug Parker expressed a desire to consider a community authority, with a six-plus mill assessment over a fixed period of time on properties within new developments, as a revenue option.

''Our job as a council is to determine the best way to go,'' he said.

But Councilman Brian Wisniewski noted that the cost outlay Pickerington's impact-fee survey -- approximately $60,000 plus White's legal fees, recoupable when impact fees at some point take effect -- virtually preclude the consideration of any other revenue option.

''I'm completely committed to this,'' Wisniewski said. ''It's dragged on for too long as it is. Developers have been getting a free ride for too long in this city.''

Councilman Michael Sabatino said he hopes that impact fees will be earmarked to offset the effect of growth on the Pickerington Local School District.

''We need to look at doing something to address the schools, so they're not putting up a levy every year or every other year,'' he said

And since both the City of Pickerington and Violet Township share Pickerington schools, White said, ''What I am envisioning here is a tripartite agreement, with the city, schools and Violet Township working together.''


The Pickerington Times-Sun

By Fly on the wall at 50 S. HIll

Is stupid written on our faces?

Dougie, didn't we go down this path in 2003 and it didn't fly then and it won't fly now.

First this is a volunteer program. The BIA must volunteer to place their land into these Community Authority districts. Second point; Dougie is that once the board or commissioners that control this CA are in place the community no longer has control over how the money is spent.

Why would the majority of the NEW Pickerington City Council now enter into a ''deal'' proposed by Doug Parker and with the very people that sued the city in 2003 for $29 Million.

Duh!!!!!!!!!


The last CA on the table would have raised $40 Million. That would have been over a FORTY year period. In that forty years those CA taxpayers would have been very unlikely to pass a school levy because they were already paying more than their neighbors across the street in many cases.

Then there is the comments by Sabatino. Where in the Hell has he been? NOW he wants to help the schools. Where was he when he was voting for all of the zonings and the Comprehensive Land Use plan back in 2001 while serving on the P & Z commission??

It is fun to watch Mike without his handlers telling him what to say and then he must struggle to make comments like this. Very rarely are his comments coherent. Here is a guy that regularly wants to change the minutes of the council meetings and once they are amended he abstains on the approval of those minutes. Obviously Mike likes to read his name in the paper regardless of how stupid he sounds.

Mike and Doug I doubt this new council will ever consider a Community Authority based on their experiences in 2003 with the builders. Doug the BIA has burnt it Bridges in Pickerington.


Mike have you noticed that the air of cooperation between Pickerington and the Township has improved since Mayor Shaver was elected? The reason is that David has reached out to them unlike your former mentors Lou and Randy and there are some solid agreements that make sense being discussed.

Maybe if you tried to be more decent like David and reach out to the other members of Council instead of the current obstruction mission you seem to be on to get under the Mayor's skin then maybe you could make a contribution to the city and its residents.

I know you and Bill will say or do anything to get elected this fall even if you must forget your past votes and then lie about your future goals. The fact is that you three are still in tight with the builders and the new members of council know it and they are not buying your attempts to slow and divert their policies and mission of slowing the growth in Pickerington and improving the quality of life here.

Maybe it is time you three moved on to another district to exploit? Your lies will be exposed because most of that data and your past records are contained on these web pages. They are public record of your past actions. Changing colors now will NOT get you re-elected.

By PATA original

What are they talking about?

I cut and pasted the below clip from the Jack Sowers article on this posting. What is this attorney Mark White talking about. I thought impact fees for schools were not available to Ohio Schools. Is this pie in the sky talk?

What is a ''Tripartite'' agreement?

Can Violet Township impose impact fees?

Is this new council playing to the press here?


And since both the City of Pickerington and Violet Township share Pickerington schools, White said, ''What I am envisioning here is a tripartite agreement, with the city, schools and Violet Township working together.''

Defined

Tripartite simply refers to an agreement amongst three parties.