HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrd. 1607-2020 (20-754)City of South San Francisco P.O. Box 711 (City Hall,
400 Grand Avenue)
South San Francisco, CA
City Council
Ordinance: ORD 1607-2020
File Number: 20-754 Enactment Number: ORD 1607-2020
ORDINANCE ADOPTING A CITYWIDE
TRANSPORTATION IMPACT FEE FOR THE CITY OF
SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO.
WHEREAS, new development projects attract new residents, visitors, and employees to the City,
and generate increased transportation needs; and
WHEREAS, Implementing Policy 4.2-I-7 of the City's General Plan provides that the City should
"[c]ontinue to require that new development pays a fair share of the costs of street and other traffic and
transportation improvements, based on traffic generated and impacts on service levels"; and
WHEREAS, Implementing Policy 4.2-I-7 of the City's General Plan provides that the City should
"[e]xplore the feasibility of establishing impact fee, especially for improvements required
in the Lindenville area"; and
WHEREAS, Implementing Policy 4.2-I-8 of the City's General Plan provides that the City should
"[d]evelop and implement a standard method to evaluate the traffic impacts of individual development";
and
WHEREAS, Implementing Policy 4.2-I-7 of the City's General Plan provides that the City should
"Where appropriate, consider upfronting portions of improvement costs where the City's economic
development interests may be served"; and
WHEREAS, in 2007, the City adopted Resolution No. 84-2007 imposing an East of 101 Traffic
Impact Fee ("East of 101 Fee") to pay for the cost of transportation infrastructure needed to support new
development in the East of 101 area of the City under the authority of Sections 66000 et seq. of the
California Government Code ("Mitigation Fee Act"); and
WHEREAS, in 2017, the City adopted Ordinance No. 1539 imposing a Bicycle and Pedestrian
Impact Fee ("Bike and Pedestrian Fee") to pay for the cost of maintaining bicycle and pedestrian
infrastructure levels and providing adequate bicycle and pedestrian improvements needed to support new
development citywide under the Mitigation Fee Act; and
WHEREAS, these existing fees have helped address specific needs in the City, their reach is limited
geographically (East of 101 Fee) or by type of transportation (Bicycle and Pedestrian Fee), and the City
has experienced an increased need for a range of multimodal transportation improvements in all areas of
the City; and
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File Number. 20-754
Enactment Number: ORD 1607-2020
WHEREAS, in August 2020 a study was prepared for the City by the Matrix Consulting Group,
entitled Development Impact Fee Study ("Nexus Study"), to analyze the relationship between new
development in the City, the transportation improvements and facilities needed to serve that growth, and
the estimated costs of those improvements and facilities, and to analyze new development's fair share of
transportation improvement costs;
WHEREAS, the calculations associated with a proposed Transportation Impact Fee in the Nexus
Study were performed by DKS Associates, as described in detail in Appendix D of the Nexus Study; and
WHEREAS, the Nexus Study has identified $160.8 million in transportation infrastructure
improvements -such as roads, sidewalks, traffic lights, bicycle lanes and pathways, curbs and gutters, and
medians -caused by new development throughout the City; and
WHEREAS, the City seeks to mitigate these transportation impacts caused by new development
and to allow the City to recover approximately $33.7 million in costs associated with new development
by providing for the payment of the citywide Transportation Impact Fee; and
WHEREAS, the City further wishes to adopt the Transportation Impact Fee to better implement
the goals contained in the General Plan and Nexus Study, including establishing fee amounts and the
improvements and facilities to be constructed with fee revenue; and
WHEREAS, the City has determined that, by developing a citywide Transportation Impact Fee, it
will spread the cost of citywide transportation needs over the entire City limits and thus will ensure that
transportation impacts felt throughout the City are accounted for, rather than only accounting for impacts
sustained in the East of 101 geographic area; and
WHEREAS, the City has also determined that, by developing a citywide Transportation Impact
Fee, it will also account for the range of multimodal transportation needs that encompass but also exceed
the need for improvements related to bicycle and pedestrian traffic only; and
WHEREAS, the City wishes to eliminate the East of 101 and Bicycle and Pedestrian Impact Fees,
as applied to new development projects not yet approved by the City, and replace the existing fees with
the citywide Transportation Impact Fee; and
WHEREAS, the City further wishes to ensure that, even though the East of 101 and Bicycle and
Pedestrian Impact Fees will be phased out, the revenues collected under those fees continue to serve the
purposes for which those fees were collected; and
WHEREAS, such development impact fees are not a "tax" as defined in Section 1, paragraph (e)
of Article XIIIC of the California Constitution ("Proposition 26") because such Fees and charges are
imposed for a specific benefit conferred or privilege granted directly to the payor that is not provided
to those not charged, and which does not exceed the reasonable cost to the local government of
providing the service or product, and/or such Fees and charges are imposed for a specific
government service or product provided directly to the payor that is not provided to those not
charged, and which does not exceed the reasonable cost to the local government of providing the
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File Number: 20-754
Enactment Number: ORD 1607-2020
service or product, and/or such Fees and charges are imposed for the reasonable regulatory costs to a
local government for issuing licenses and permits, performing investigations, inspections and audits,
enforcing agricultural marketing orders and the administrative enforcement and adjudication thereof,
and/or such fees and charges are imposed as a condition of property development; and
WHEREAS, the City will adopt a separate resolution to set the Fee at rates consistent with the
Nexus Study and this Ordinance; and
WHEREAS, in accordance with Section 66019 of the Mitigation Fee Act, at least fourteen (14)
days prior to the public hearing at which this Ordinance was introduced, notice of the time and place of
the hearing was mailed to interested parties who filed written requests with the City for mailed notice of
meetings on new or increased fees or service charges; and
WHEREAS, ten (10) days advance notice of the public hearing at which this Ordinance was
introduced was given by publication in accordance with Government Code Section 6062a; and
WHEREAS, in accordance with Section 66016 of the Mitigation Fee Act, at least ten (10) days
prior to the public hearing at which this Ordinance was introduced, the Nexus Study was made available
to the public for review; and
WHEREAS, the action taken by this Ordinance has no potential for physical effects on the
environment because it involves an adoption of certain fees and/or charges imposed by the City, does not
commit the City to any specific project, and said fees and/or charges are applicable to future
development projects and/or activities, each of which future projects and/or activities will be fully
evaluated in full compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act ("CEQA") when sufficient
physical details regarding said projects and/or activities are available to permit meaningful CEQA
review (See CEQA Guidelines, Section 15004(b)(1)). Therefore, approval of the Fee and/or charges is
not a "project" for purposes of CEQA, pursuant to CEQA Guidelines, Section 15378(b)(4); and, even if
considered a "project" under CEQA, is exempt from CEQA review pursuant to CEQA Guidelines
Section 15061(b)(3) because it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that approval of the
Fee and/or charges may have a significant effect on the environment.
NOW, THEREFORE, the City Council of the City of South San Francisco does hereby ORDAIN
as follows:
SECTION 1. Findings
The City Council finds that the foregoing recitals are true and correct and are incorporated into
the Ordinance by this reference.
SECTION 2. Amendment to Chapter 8.68
The City Council hereby amends Section 8.68.050 of Chapter 8.68, Title 8, of the South San
Francisco Municipal Code to read as follows (with additions indicated in italics):
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File Number: 20-754
8.68.050 Application of bicycle and pedestrian impact fee.
Enactment Number: ORD 1607-2020
All residential and nonresidential development projects shall be required to pay the bicycle and
pedestrian impact fee established pursuant to this chapter, unless subject to the transportation impact fee
provided for in Chapter 8.73.
SECTI®N 3. Adoption of Chapter 8.73
The City Council hereby adopts Chapter 8.73 ("Transportation Impact Fee") of Title 8 of the South
San Francisco Municipal Code to read as follows:
Chapter 8.73
8.73.010 Purpose.
8.73.020 Transportation Impact Fee established.
8.73.030 Use of fee revenues.
8.73.040 Effect on East of 101 and Bicycle and Pedestrian Impact Fees.
8.73.050 Appeals.
8.73.010 Purpose.
The City Council finds and determines that public improvements and facilities must be constructed to
accommodate the increased travel demand of new development projected within South San Francisco
while maintaining current service standards, to reduce the transportation -related impacts caused by this
new development, and to implement the transportation -related goals contained in the General Plan. The
purpose of the Transportation Impact Fee is to finance these public improvements and facilities, and for
each new development to pay its fair and proportional share of the improvements.
8.73.020 Transportation impact fee established.
A. A citywide Transportation Impact Fee is established to pay for transportation improvements.
B. The City Council shall, in a resolution adopted after a duly noticed public hearing, set
forth the amount of the fee, describe the need for the fee, list the types of transportation improvements to
be financed, describe the estimated cost of these improvements, describe the reasonable relationship
between the fee and the various types of future development, and set forth time for calculation and
payment of the fee.
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File Number: 20-754
8.73.030 Use of fee revenues.
Enactment Number., ORD 1607-2020
Transportation Impact Fee revenue shall be used only for the purposes outlined in this chapter and by
resolution, consistent with the purposes of the Fee.
8.73.040 Effect on East of 101 Traffic Fee and Bicycle and Pedestrian Impact Fee.
Following adoption of this chapter and the implementing resolution provided in section 8.73.020, any
project subject to the citywide Transportation Impact Fee shall be exempt from the East of 101 Impact
Fee adopted in Resolution No. 84-2007, or the Bicycle and Pedestrian Impact Fee chapter 8.68,
Resolution No. 84-2007. Notwithstanding the above, if a court of competent jurisdiction declares the
citywide transportation impact fee to be invalid or otherwise prevents the City from collecting this fee
following the fee becoming effective, all projects shall remain subject to all of the requirements of
Chapter 8.68 and, if applicable, of Resolution No. 84-2007 or Paragraph F.3 of Section 20.260.006.
8.73.050 Appeals.
A developer may appeal the amount of the transportation impact fee due in writing to the City Manager
with supporting documentation. The City Manager shall consider the appeal and shall make a decision
on the appeal. The decision of the City Manager shall be final.
SECTION 4. Severability.
If any section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase of this Ordinance is for any reason held to be
invalid or unconstitutional by a decision of any court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not
affect the validity of the remaining portions of this Ordinance. The City Council hereby declares that it
would have passed the Ordinance, and each and every section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase not
declared invalid or unconstitutional without regard to whether any portion of this Ordinance would be
subsequently declared invalid or unconstitutional.
SECTION 5. Publication and Effective Date
Pursuant to the provisions of Government Code Section 36933, a summary of this Ordinance shall be
prepared by the City Attorney. At least five (5) days prior to the Council meeting at which this Ordinance
is scheduled to be adopted, the City Clerk shall (1) publish the Summary, and (2) post in the City Clerk's
Office a certified copy of this Ordinance. Within fifteen (15) days after the adoption of this Ordinance,
the City Clerk shall (1) publish the summary, and (2) post in the City Clerk's Office a certified copy of
the full text of this Ordinance along with the names of those City Council members voting for and
against this Ordinance or otherwise voting. This Ordinance shall become effective thirty (30) days from
and after its adoption.
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File Number: 20-754
Enactment Number: ORD 1607-2020
Introduced at a regular meeting of the City Council of the City of South San Francisco held the 23' day
of September 2020.
At a meeting of the City Council on 10/14/2020, a motion was made by Vice Mayor Addiego, seconded
by Councilmember Nicolas, that this Ordinance be adopted. The motion passed.
Yes: 5 Mayor Garbarino, Vice Mayor Addiego, Councilmember Nagales, Councilmember
Nicolas, and Councilmember Matsumoto
Attest by L
osa Govea Acosta, City Clerk
Richard Garbarino, Mayor
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