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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council Resolution 2528 RESOLUTION NO. 2528 A RE~0L~TIO N OF THE C1TY (~OUNCIL OF T~ CITY OF ~ARATOGA (~0NCERI~I~G TRE IMPOSITION OF A TRAFFIC IMPACT FEE FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OP NEW DWRI.tjNG UNITS IN THE NHR ZONING DISTRICT WHEREAS, on September 5, 1984, the City Council of the City of Saratoga adopted Ordinance No. 70, entitled "An Ordinance of the City of Saratoga Establishing a Traffic Impact Fee to Finance Traffic Circulation Improvements in the NHR Zoning District;" and WHEREAS, Ordinance No. 70 was based upon the following findings and determinations made by the City Council at the time said Ordinance was adopted: "A. At a special election ordered consolidated with the general election held on April 8, 1980, the voters of the City of Saratoga adopted an initiative ordinance commonly known as Measure "A" entitled "An Initiative Ordinance Directing Preparation of a Specific Plan for Preservation of the Rural Character of the Northwest Hillsides of the City of Saratoga and Imposing a Moratorium on Development Pending Completion of said Plan." B. Pursuant to the requirements of Measure "A" and the provisions of the California Government Code, Sections 65500 et seq., on June 2, 1981, the City Council adopted the "Specific Plan for the Northwest Hillsides of the City of Saratoga" ('~Jpeeific Plan"). C. The area covered by Measure "A" and the Specific Plan is designated in the City's zoning ordinance as the the "NHR District." D. At the present time, there is only one public road through the NHR District, being Pierce Road, which is inadequate in terms of size, design and physical condition to handle the traffic circulation needs created by anticipated future development of single family homes within the NHR District. In addition, Pierce Road has, in the past, been subjected to damage or destruction as a result of landslides or other geologic hazards. E. The continued reliance upon Pierce Road as the only means of access through the NHR District presents a direct threat to the public health, safety and welfare. Emergency response vehicles cannot effectively service the area. Since most of the NHR District is located within a hazardous fire zone, an alternative access is particularly necessary to reduce the response times of the Saratoga and Central Fire Districts, including services to be provided by the proposed Seven Springs Fire Station to be constructed adjacent to the NHR District. -1- F. The circulation element of the Specific Plan expressly requires the construction of a public road through the NHR District, running in a southwesterly and northeasterly direction between Mt. Eden and Parker Ranch Road ('~W-NE Road"). According to the traffic studies attached as Appendix 4 to the Specific Plan, the SW-NE Road would significantly relieve the traffic burden on Pierce Road. The Specific Plan also provided for various improvements to Pierce Road, including repaying and reconstruction of bridges. G. Pursuant to policies and action programs set forth in the Specific Plan, the City Council retained the services of Jennings-McDermott- Heiss, Inc., ("JMH, Inc.") to prepare the initial plans, specifications, cost estimates and financing alternatives for the traffic circulation improvements in the NHR District. In july, 1984, JMH, Inc. submitted to the City a Northwestern Hillside Circulation Impact Study ("Impact Study"), which is incorporated herein by reference. The following estimates were included as part of the Impact Study: (1) Construction cost for SW-NE Road. (2) Development potential of all unimproved land within the NHR District (i.e., maximum permitted number of new dwelling units). (3) Calculation of Traffic Impact Fee, based upon each new dwelling unit bearing an equal share of the total cost of the traffic circulation improvements. H. JMH, Inc., has also furnished to the City preliminary plans, specifications and cost estimates prepared by Riley Associates, Civil Engineers, for reconstruction of the bridge on Pierce Road at Chalet Clotilde Drive ("North Bridge"). I. The construction of SW-NE Road, reconstruction of the North Bridge and improvements to Pierce Road will directly benefit all of the future residents in the NHR District. Such improvements are required to meet the traffic circulation needs created by new development in the area. The occupants of each new dwelling unit within the NHR District will derive the same benefit from the traffic circulation improvements and it is therefore equitable to allocate the cost of the improvements on an equal basis. J. The City of Saratoga has eustomarily required developers to contribute toward the cost of public improvements necessitated by the direct or cumulative impact of each development. The establishment of a Traffic Impact Fee to finance the construction of traffic circulation improvements in the NHR District is consistent with the Saratoga General Plan, the Specific Plan and the established practices of the City." WIII~REA~, Assembly Bill No. 1600 requires certain determinations to be made in connection with development fees to finance public facilities which are imposed by the City on or after January 1, 1989, and the Traffic Impact Fee established and imposed pursuant to Ordinance No. 70 is subject to this requirement. -2- NOW, THEREFORE, IT IS HEREBY RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SARATOGA AS FOLLOWS: l. Incorporation of Ordinance Fin~it~8. Each of the findings and determinations set forth in Ordinance No. 70, as quoted above, is hereby ratified, confirmed and incorporated herein by reference. 2. Definitions. The following terms, as used herein, shall have the same meanings as described in Ordinance No. 70: '~pecific Plan," "NI-IR District," "SW-NE Road," "JMH, Inc.," "Impact Study" "North Bridge." 3. Additional Findings. With respect to events and circumstances occurring subsequent to the adoption and implementation of Ordinance No. 70, the City Council finds and determines as follows: (a) After periodic adjustments to the amount charged for the Traffic Impact Fee based upon the percentage of any increase in the Caltrans Highway Index, as authorized in Section 4 of Ordinance No. 70, the amount of such fee being charged as of the date this Resolution is adopted is the sum of $5,894.00. This amount represents an increase of approximately 18% above the original fee of $5,000.00. (b) No disbursements have been made from the Northwest Hillside Traffic Circulation Fund. As of the date this Resolution is adopted, the amount accumulated in such fund from the deposit of Traffic Impact Fees is the sum of approximately $506,000.00. (c) The SW-NE Road has not been constructed and no additional rights of way have been acquired by the City for such road. An updated cost estimate has been prepared by JMH, Inc., dated July 15, 1988 (the "Updated Estimate") showing a total cost to construct the SW-NE Road in the amount of $2,084,000.00. The Updated Estimate represents an increase of approximately 20% above the estimated cost of $1,740,585.00 set forth in the Impact Study. (d) The North Bridge has not been reconstructed. It is possible that such work may be performed as a condition of a tentative development approval recently granted by the City, but final approval of this project has not been issued and there is no assurance at the present time that a final development approval will be obtained. (e) As a result of various settlement agreements executed by the City to resolve litigation prompted by the enactment of Measure "A," the City Planning Department has determined that the potential number of residential lots within the NHR District on which a Traffic Impact Fee has been or may be charged is 385, rather than 346 as stated in the Impact Study prepared by JMH, Inc. (f) Although some improvement work has been performed on Pierce Road since the adoption of Ordinance No. 70, sections of this road still require resurfacing or repair. Pierce Road is now being utilized by the occupants of newly constructed residences within the NIiR District. 4. Purpose of Fee. The Traffic Impact Fee was established and imposed to meet the traffic circulation needs created by new development in the NHR District. Such needs have not been reduced or mitigated since the time Ordinance No. 70 was -3- adopted. The volume of new construction in the NHR District has actually increased during the last few years as a result of favorable economic conditions. 5. U~e of l~ee. As originally stated in Ordinance No. 70, the Traffic Impact Fee will be utilized to finance the following public facilities in the order of priority listed below: (a) Constr~ction of the SW-NE Road, in accordance with the Specific Plan and the Impact Study. (b) Reconstruction or replacement of the North Bridge. (c) Resurfacing or repair of Pierce Road located within the NHR District. 6. Relationship Between Use of Fee and Type of Development. The NHR District is a very low density residential zone in which all new development will consist of single family dwellings. The public facilities to be financed by the Traffic Impact Fee are designed and intended to service the present and future occupants of these dwellings. Such facilities have become necessary by reason of the increased volume of traffic generated by the new residential development. Consequently, there is a direct relationship between the use of the fee and imposition of such fee upon each new residential dwelling unit constructed within the NHR District. 7. Relationship Between Need for Public Facilities and Type of Development. As stated above, the only type of new development that will occur in the NHR District is the construction of single family dwellings. At the present time, there is only one through road which traverses the NHR District and this road is inadequate to handle the traffic circulation needs created by new residential development. It is primarily the occupants of this new development who will have a need for the facilities to be financed by the Traffic Impact Fee. 8. RelationShip Between Amount of Fee and Cost of Facilities. The Traffic Impact Fee is based upon a determination by the City Couneil that: "The occupants of each new dwelling unit within the NHR District will derive the same benefit from the traffie circulation improvements and it is therefore equitable to allocate the eost of the improvements on an equal basis." Thus, the original amount of the fee was calculated by dividing the estimated construction cost for the SW-NE Road by the estimated potential number of building permits for new single family residences within the NHR District. It was recognized that such amount would not generate sufficient funds to pay for all of the improvements listed in Ordinance No. 70, and the City might therefore be required to finance some of this work out of its own general revenues. Since the adoption of Ordinance No. 70, the construction costs have increased to a larger degree than the increase in the amount of the fee. Although this discrepancy may be partially offset by the higher number of potential lots on which the fee may be charged and the fact that some of the improvement work may be performed by private developers, all of the projected future payments of the Traffic Impact Fee will still be required to finance construction of the SW-NE Road. Subject only to annual adjustments as provided in Ordinance No. 70, the fee is eelleered on an equal basis for every building permit to construct a new single family residence within the NHR District. 9. Judicial Action. Any judicial action or proceeding to attack, review, -4- set aside, void or annul this Resolution shall be brought within 120 days from the date this Resolution is adopted. ,~** Passed and adopted at a regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Saratoga held on the 7th day of December 1988, by the following vote: AYES: Councilrasmt~rs Clevenger, Peterson, Stut zman, and Mayor ~derson NOES: None ABS'B~T: · CouncilEeaber Moyles /74, " M · - --.yor ATTEST: city Clerk -5-