Manatee County is looking for public input over the next month for a new set of proposed impact fees, a one-time charge the County imposes on new development to pay costs of providing public services to the new development. A draft copy of the Manatee County Impact Fee Update Study can be viewed at
www.mymanatee.org/impactfees Manatee County will hold an online public comment period from Feb. 5 through March 8. Public comment or questions can be sent emailed to
Nicole.knapp@mymanatee.org or sent to Nicole Knapp, Impact Fee Administrator, PO Box 1000, Bradenton, FL 34206 or call her at (941) 748-4501, ext. 7824.
ManaSota-88 supports adopting impact fees that make new development pay 100% the costs associated with the residential and commercial growth. Funding mechanisms need to be in place that meets the educational and infrastructure needs of the community.
Nearly everyone now recognizes that those who benefit from fast development should at least pay for it, rather than having the cost hidden in everyone's property tax bill.
County income will never be enough to cover all costs caused by growth unless impact fees are adequate. Federal and state funds are diminishing and there is a limit to what can be raised by taxes. When there is a shortfall, among the services most likely to suffer are those that protect the natural environment and public health. Without adequate fees, capital improvements will be woefully shortchanged, or the burden will be passed on to all taxpayers as in the past. Sooner or later taxpayers will seek a remedy for this unfair treatment. It is certainly unwise to set impact fees below the actual cost of growth to the detriment of the county's fiscal position.
Our concern is not with normal growth unless it unduly and adversely impacts the environment as, for example, phosphate mining in a watershed. We are concerned with excessive growth. When you leapfrog undeveloped land to sanction urban sprawl, when you allow excessive development in a flood prone area, when you rezone many enormous tracts to higher density, that is no longer normal growth. Manatee County is projected to grow significantly in the next decade. Such excessive growth is not imperative, it will be the direct result of actions taken by the County Commission to encourage or at least permit it. Excessive growth must be required to pay its way.
If the Manatee County Commission is truly concerned with the well-being of its residents, then the Commission must use every available opportunity to provide equitable funding for necessary infrastructure and educational needs.
Manatee County will become a less desirable place to live if new school construction and transportation projects continue to be under funded.
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