Ordinance 3504-16 - Laserfiche WebLink

C. All fees collected under this chapter shall be obligated or expended on transportation improvements. Fees collected for specific projects shall be expended on those projects or may be expended on replacement projects that provide similar or greater improvements. D. The fees shall be obligated or expended in all cases within five years of collection. Any fees not so obligated or expended shall be refunded with interest at the rate applied to judgments to the property owners of record at the time of refund; however, if the payment is not obligated or expended within five years due to delay attributable to the project applicant, the payment shall be refunded without interest. E. An applicant's commitment to specific performance to construct or to pay a fair share of a transportation improvement (as specified in EMC 18.40.100.A.2), including any bonds or financial assurance associated with the improvement, shall not be considered a fee, regardless of whether a monetary value has been assigned to the improvements in the traffic analysis or other project review documents or agreements. Section 6. Section 18.40.145, "Fee Exemptions" is added to the Everett Municipal Code for Transportation Mitigation as follows: A. The city may, on a case-by-case basis, grant exemptions to the application of the fee for planned system improvements (as specified in EMC 18.40.100.A.1) for new low income housing units in accordance with the conditions specified under RCW 82.02.060(2). To qualify for the exemption, the developer shall submit an application to the planning and community development director for consideration by the city prior to application for building permit. Conditions for such approvals shall meet the requirements of RCW 82.02.060(2), which includes payment of the fee from public funds other than the fee for transportation improvement account. In addition, any approved exemption will require a covenant that will assure the project's continued use for low income housing. The covenant shall be an obligation that runs with the land upon which the housing is located, and shall be recorded against the title of the real property. B. The city may, on a case-by-case basis, grant a partial exemption of not more than eighty percent of fees for planned system improvements (as specified in EMC 18.40.100.A.1), with no explicit requirement to pay the exempted portion of the fee from public funds, for low-income housing units, pursuant to the following: 1. The Mayor, or designee, may grant an exemption to a low-income housing project for each low-income unit. 2. The decision to grant, partially grant or deny an exemption shall be based on the public benefit of the specific project, the extent to which the applicant has sought other funding sources, the financial hardship to the project of paying the impact fees, the impacts of the project on public facilities and services, and the consistency of the project with adopted city plans and policies relating to low-income housing. 3. An exemption granted under this subsection must be conditioned upon requiring the developer to record a covenant approved by the director of planning and community development that prohibits using the property for any purpose other than for low-income housing. At a minimum, the covenant must address price restrictions and household income limits for the low-income housing, and require that, if the property is converted to a use other than for low-income housing as defined in the covenant, the property owner must pay the applicable fees for transportation improvements in effect at the time of any conversion. Covenants required by this subsection must be recorded with the Snohomish County Auditor. 8