Spokane County considers hiking certain construction fees by more than 1,500%

Yahoo

12 hours ago

(The Center Square) – Building in Spokane County could become much more expensive soon, as local officials consider hiking several permitting fees for the first time in years, some by more than 1,500%.
Spokane County Public Works charges a variety of fees to cover its costs, but many of those have sat stagnant for over a decade. While neglected for years, the Board of County Commissioners has a more than $20 million deficit to balance ahead of 2026, and adjusting these fees could help close that delta.
Environmental Services Administrator Ben Brattebo briefed the board on several proposals Monday, focusing on four areas: right–of-way fees, development services and traffic fees, floodplain fees and sewer fees. Developers would face the largest cost increases, but will likely pass those on to buyers.
'About 15 years ago,' Brattebo replied when asked how long it had been since the county last raised its development fees. 'These are just for building a subdivision or building a big commercial project, and so this won't hit the individual homeowners except for that it comes through in the lot price.'
He was referring to plat administration and zone administration fees, commercial building permits and other types of fees; essentially, costs developers pay and then split between each unit in that project.
The current hourly billing system is unpredictable, so the department proposed moving toward a flat, lump-sum model. For preliminary long plat with 29 lots or more, the current fee would go from around $500 to $7,250, a 1,350% increase. Zoning reclassifications, comprehensive plan amendments, and conditional use permits will all increase from $250 to $3,000, a 1,110% hike, and that's only the start.
'Suggest that maybe you spend some time with [county spokesperson] Pat Bell and work out the messaging,' Commissioner Al French said, 'because I can already see the headline: 'County increases fees by $250 to $3,000.''
The officials noted that many of the proposed fees align with those of other surrounding jurisdictions.
Regardless, sticker shock is a factor, but Tuesday was only the first touch for the board. They plan to continue discussing the fee increases over the coming weeks. Some may go up while others may fall.
Residential floodplain permit fees currently cost $140, but could rise to $2,000, a nearly 1,330% hike.
Commercial floodplain permits would go from $235 to $4,000, representing an over 1,600% increase.
French worries that the fees may give off the impression that the county anti-development, when in reality, the department is gasping for air after more than a decade without adjustments. Average homeowners will still feel the impact, though, as sewer and utility connection fees may also rise from $150 to $250.
'We need to continue to keep our eyes on this and refine moving forward, but we are 15 plus years behind and way far away from cost recovery,' Public Works Director Kyle Twohig told the board.
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