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APPROVE THE SAN JOAQUIN MULTI-SPECIES HABITAT CONSERVATION AND OPEN SPACE PLAN 2019 DEVELOPMENT FEE SCHEDULE
recommended action
RECOMMENDATION
It is recommended that the City Council adopt a Resolution approving the San Joaquin Multi-Species Habitat Conservation and Open Space Plan 2019 development fee schedule.
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Summary
It is recommended that Council approve the 2019 San Joaquin Multi-Species Habitat Conservation and Open Space Plan (“Plan”) 2019 development fee schedule. The Plan is voluntary and is available to the development community as an option to meet their habitat mitigation obligations without having each development project negotiate individual mitigation measures with various federal and state environmental protection agencies.
On August 23, 2018, the San Joaquin County Council of Governments, Inc. (SJCOG, Inc.) board approved the 2019 Plan fee schedule. The fee consists of three fee categories: Category A - Acquisition; Category B - Enhancement; and Category C - Land Management/Administration.
In November 2017, SJCOG, Inc. approved an 8.9% increase from the prior year, which the City Council adopted for the 2018 Plan. The SJCOG, Inc. proposes a decrease of 30.9% in the Open Space and Agricultural/Natural habitat classifications (Attachment A - 2019 Fees and Analysis) for the 2019 Plan. The decrease is primarily due to an adjustment in the model for the acquisition of habitat in Category A - Acquisition. The City Council is requested to approve this decrease.
DISCUSSION
Background
On February 20, 2001, the Stockton City Council adopted three Resolutions as follows:
1. Resolution No. 01-0099 -- Certifying the Final Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Impact Statement (Final EIR/EIS), adopting the related California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Findings and Mitigation Reporting/Monitoring Program, and adopting the San Joaquin County Multi-Species Habitat Conservation and Open Space Plan;
2. Resolution No. 01-0100 -- Adopting the Implementation Agreement of the San Joaquin County Multi-Species Habitat Conservation and Open Space Plan authorizing the filing of the related Federal Endangered Species Act Section 10(a)(1)(B) Incidental Take Permit application with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; and
3. Resolution No. 01-0101 -- Approving amendments to the Joint Powers Agreement with the SJCOG, Inc. authorizing SJCOG, Inc. to assume responsibilities specified in the San Joaquin County Multi-Species Habitat Conservation and Open Space Plan.
Applicants that participate in the Plan benefit from a pre-determined streamlined process. By participating in the Plan, the applicant may choose from a menu of options to mitigate impacts:
1. Pay a Development Fee;
2. Redesign the project to avoid/minimize impacts;
3. Provide land in lieu of the Development Fee; or
4. Any combination of the above options.
Alternatively, a project can choose not to participate in the Plan and fulfill mitigation requirements on its own with the respective permitting agencies.
Development fees for individual projects (e.g., house on a single parcel) are adjusted to ensure that the per acre fee as established by SJCOG, Inc. is collected for the entire (gross) project area. For example, a house built on a parcel within a large subdivision relies on additional land to support the residential use (e.g., road in front of the house). The adjusted development fee includes this supporting land so that all the acreage is accounted for within a given project area, and the appropriate Plan fee is paid.
On December 15, 2009, the City Council adopted Resolution Number 09-409, which authorized an amendment to the Public Facility Fee Program’s Administrative Guidelines to establish SJCOG, Inc. as the entity responsible for the collection of the Development Fee. Each year, SJCOG, Inc. uses comparable agricultural land sales within San Joaquin County that meet certain criteria adopted by the Board. Easement acquisition costs are a primary consideration, as are comparable land sale costs. As shown in Table 1 below, Plan fees can be quite different from year to year. The rise in Plan fees is primarily a result of the land acquisition component.
Table 1 - Plan Fees 2014-2019
|
TYPE/YEAR |
2014 |
2015 |
2016 |
2017 |
2018 |
2019 |
|
Open Space |
$6,656 |
$7,281 |
$7,807 |
$8,905 |
$9,701 |
$6,700 |
|
AG/Natural |
$13,295 |
$14,543 |
$15,596 |
$17,808 |
$19,400 |
$13,399 |
|
Vernal Pool (Upland) |
$39,047 |
$42,784 |
$46,869 |
$66,437 |
$72,523 |
$54,576 |
|
Vernal Pool (Wetted) |
$80,972 |
$85,631 |
$90,273 |
$109,737 |
$116,871 |
$101,033 |
Present Situation
On August 23, 2018, the SJCOG, Inc. Board approved the proposed 2019 Development Fee decrease based on the financial analysis model approved by the San Joaquin Council of Governments, Inc. Board of Directors. The fee model uses three fee categories: Category A - Acquisition; Category B - Enhancement; and Category C - Land Management/Administration.
I. Category A (Acquisition) - Comparables:
This category addresses land valuation and is based on comparable land sales in San Joaquin County. To be included in the analysis, the land sale must have occurred in specific zones of the SJMSCP plan area (Central Zone and Delta Zone) over an established 2-year period. Each year, all qualified comparable land sales in each zone, including SJCOG, Inc. easements, are evaluated to establish a weighted cost per acre using the methodology in previous Financial Analysis Updates.
The criteria to determine valid comparable land sales used in the weighted calculation are:
a. All SJCOG, Inc. transactions (fee title and appraised value of unencumbered property)
b. Sales not less than 40 acres
c. Sales not greater than 640 acres
d. No parcels with vineyard or orchard (except SJCOG, Inc. transactions for special needs)
e. Must be land which would fulfill mitigation under the SJMSCP
f. Not greater than two years old from the date of June 30th of each year with all acceptable comparable land sales included (criteria 1-5). A minimum of 10 acceptable comparable land sales is required for analysis. If the minimum of 10 transactions is not available, the period will extend at three-month intervals before the beginning date until ten comparable land sales are gathered.
II. Category B (Assessment & Enhancement) - Refined Cost Factors/Redistribution of Habitat/Consumer Price Index
This category includes cost factors for biological site assessment and preserve enhancement and management planning. The cost factor for this category of the fee is adjusted annually using the California Consumer Price Index (CPI), as reported by the California Department of Finance for the preceding 12 months (July-June), inflation factor will be applied to update annual costs for site assessment, management plans, and enhancement plans.
III. Category C (Management & Administration) - Refined Cost Factors/Long Term Investment/Consumer Price Index
This category includes factors for management and administration costs that are based on actual SJCOG, Inc. expenditures incurred in these categories. Annual cost updates will continue to use the California Consumer Price Index (CPI), as reported by the California Department of Finance, for the preceding 12 months (July - June) to keep pace with inflation on an annual basis.
Plan Mitigation Fee Formula = Proposed 2019 Plan Fees
The formula for fee calculation is categorized into three distinct components (discussed above) to calculate a supported fee per acre [FEE = Category A (acquisition) + Category B (assessment & enhancement) + Category C (management & administration)].
For comparison purposes, the existing 2018 SJMSCP (Plan) Development Fees and calculations are shown in Table 2, and the proposed 2019 Plan Fees and calculations are shown in Table 3. Compared to 2018, the proposed 2019 Plan Fees reflect an overall decrease of 30.9% in the Open Space, Agricultural and Natural habitat classifications. The fees for the Vernal Pool Upland and Wetted habitat classifications decreased 24.7% and 13.6% respectively, based on potential acquisition and enhancement/restoration costs associated with the creation of those habitat types.
Table 2 - 2018 SJMSCP (Plan) Development Fees
|
Habitat Type |
Category A |
Category B |
Category C |
Total Fee |
Rounded Fee |
|
Open Space |
$7,531.00 |
$1,774.00 |
$395.97 |
$9,700.97 |
$9,701 |
|
AG/Natural |
$15,062.00 |
$3,547.00 |
$790.90 |
$19,399.90 |
$19,400 |
|
Vernal Pool (grasslands) |
$55,853.00 |
$14,261.00 |
$2,409.36 |
$75,523.36 |
$72,523 |
|
Vernal Pool (wetted) |
$54,837.00 |
$59,669.00 |
$2,365.36 |
$116,871.36 |
$116,871 |
Table 3 - Proposed 2019 SJMSCP Development Fees
|
Habitat Type |
Category A |
Category B |
Category C |
Total Fee |
Rounded Fee |
|
Open Space |
$4,425.00 |
$1,864.00 |
$411.41 |
$6,700.41 |
$6,700 |
|
AG/Natural |
$8,850.00 |
$3,727.00 |
$821.75 |
$13,398.75 |
$13,399 |
|
Vernal Pool (grasslands) |
$37,259.00 |
$14,814.00 |
$2,503.33 |
$54,576.33 |
$54,576 |
|
Vernal Pool (wetted) |
$36,581.00 |
$61,994.00 |
$2,457.61 |
$101,032.61 |
$101,033 |
On August 23, 2018, the SJCOG, Inc. Board approved the proposed 2019 Development Fees based on the financial analysis model approved by the San Joaquin Council of Governments, Inc. Board of Directors. The model concluded that the decrease in fees is due primarily to the adjustment in the percentage of habitat acquired in easement as opposed to fee title which changed from 70% to 61% in Category A land acquisition costs. The most recent financial analysis is contained in Attachment A - 2019 Fees and Analysis. The Habitat Fee must be adopted by each local jurisdiction to take effect in that community.
Please note that the City has adopted a public facility fee reduction program and fee deferral program for specified fees within the City’s control. However, fees such as this Countywide Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) Fee are subject to a regional agreement that was promulgated by the Federal and State Endangered Species Act. The administration of this fee is detailed in the Countywide HCP where SJCOG Inc. is the designated Administrator and methodologies and fees analyses are overseen by SJCOG Habitat and Financial subcommittees. As a result, these “development fees” are not subject to the reduction and deferral programs.
PUBLIC NOTICE
A Public Notice of this hearing was published in The Record on October 15, 2018.
FINANCIAL SUMMARY
There is no direct financial impact to the City of Stockton, as this Development Fee is collected directly by SJCOG, Inc.
Attachment A - 2019 Fees and Analysis