With some reluctance, members of the Mammoth Town Council gave a tentative nod to the elimination of DIF, Developer Impact Fees, for a year on smaller projects with the hope that this move would
jump start construction in Town. This item will come up for approval at a special meeting of the Council on Wednesday.
If the Council does throw out these fees for a year, it could potentially cost the General Fund $92,000. Councilman Rick Wood expressed concern about a cut in revenue as the Town talks with Mammoth Lakes Land Acquisition about payment of the $41 million debt. Local contractors stood up to say elimination of DIF would definitely encourage people o build. Long-time, outspoken local, Gordon Alper, said DIF was a bad idea in the first place and should be revoked.
Local designer Craig Tapley told the Council about a triplex project in limbo with building permit fees of $14,000 and Developer Impact Fees of $39,000. “It won’t happen with DIF,” said Tapley. Councilman Rick Wood, who sat on the Council in 2005 when DIF was voted in, had not taken part in the vote because he had a project going at the time. He said, “The Town had a pretty greedy hand.” Wood called the fee a “bad, irresponsible bet.” Howevr, Wood said he’s concerned about the bigger picture – the $41 million debt and, as he calculates it, the $7,000 in interest adding up daily.
Councilman Matthew Lehman said he was not focusing on the big debt. He called for leadership for the economy and relief for smaller projects. Wood argued that the Town lives on Transient Occupancy Tax not construction. Mayor Jo Bacon said she agreed with Wood and was “not ready to subsidize a section of our economy.”
After a couple of hours of talk, the Council voted 3 to 1 with John Eastman the no vote, to draft a resolution for a vote this Wednesday. The resolution would defer DIF for one year for smaller projects including single family homes, maintain Affordable Housing, Building ad Planning fees, and include pending projects.
Ken – I kind of like your conclusion, but the rest is a blur!
Won’t make any real difference either way…
Eliminating the DIF for private property owners trying to improve their property is a good idea if done carefully so as to prevent big money speculators from buying out small properties and redeveloping. If a private home owner is remodeling his home into a duplex or triplex to get some… Read more »
well of course Lameman wants more building to occur…so he can appraise it (he is a real estate appraiser, is he not?) an put a dollar in his pocket. Just as long as it’s not affordable housing, which he attributes as a factor in the downturn in real estate here… Read more »
boom boom
“OUT GO THE LIGHTS”
I say we have a town council sale. Starting bid 41 million!
and in today’s other results , it was real estate developers 1 and taxpayers 0
REDUCING your revenue in the face of a $41 million liability staring u right in the kisser .
now that’s novel .
I bet it would help the local people in construction ,I bet the town council isn’t wondering about their next paycheck !
It won’t help start projects, but it did help stifle projects.