The Dallas City Council approved a comprehensive ordinance that would update development fees related to permitting, engineering, inspections and other services starting May 1.
As a result, fees related to the development services sector are likely to increase, although some will be reduced by new measures.
This is a move that will help the ministry collect more revenue and begin to become operationally self-sustaining, but the private sector has reluctantly complied, with prices for residential and commercial projects being doubled and tripled. Those high costs will be passed on to renters, shoppers and other end users, business people said.
Dallas rates must be evaluated every three years and can be reviewed more frequently if necessary. Dallas development fees have not increased since 2015.
The fee increase would help subsidize a $20 million funding gap in the Development Services Department's budget that the city must fill.
Andrew Espinoza, director of development services and principal architect, said Wednesday that the goal of the new fees is to achieve “complete and 100 percent cost recovery.”
In it, he said he is working on identifying workflow delays and bottlenecks. Espinoza said a focus on technology, talent retention and key performance indicators should help with that.
Dallas City Councilman Chad West said he hopes Espinoza will eventually show Congress the cost savings realized by these measures.
“Hold me that responsibility,” Espinoza responded.
A rate study prepared by an outside consulting firm found that Dallas' development services department only makes enough revenue to cover 55% ($50 million) of the total cost, with the city paying the rest. There was found.
This has led the Development Services Department to re-evaluate many of its fees.
For developers, the main issue with the raises wasn't that there were actually raises, but that it felt like the department was making up a decade's worth of raises all at once.
With a May 1 start date, the Development Services division should bring in an estimated $8.5 million in additional revenue this year.
Development Services staff made it clear at Wednesday's City Council meeting that there would be no grace period. All submissions made before May 1st are expected to be submitted in full to be eligible for the current rate, use the application form as a placeholder to obtain the current rate price. You can't.
