"We want to discuss it a little more," Commissioner John McQueeney said in a phone interview. He said a delay of 60 to 90 days should not hurt.

Doug Shreve, executive director of the Queen Anne's County Chamber of Commerce, said the organization was pleased the commissioners decided to pull the proposed ordinance. He said chamber members realize there will be impact fees - there are two impact fees in place now - but the proposed fees for non-residential development are much too high.

"We don't want to be known as the second most expensive county (in Maryland) to do business," said Shreve. 

Considering the current economic conditions, this is not the time to raise impact fees, said Shreve. He said the chamber will assemble a task force of business people knowledgeable in construction and development to search for alternatives to impact fees.

"In short, we think (the commissioners) are doing the right thing at the right time," said Shreve.

At the Nov. 20 commissioners meeting, several business owners spoke out strongly against the impact fee ordinance, saying the fee hikes would discourage economic development. Chamber of Commerce President Bill Stoops read a statement which urged the commissioners to delay passage of higher impact fees for one year and to appoint a committee of business people to identify other sources of revenue for the county.

The impact fee issue was not listed on the agenda in the morning open session part of the commissioners' Nov. 27 meeting. The commissioners took action later that day in open session after holding closed (executive) sessions on other topics. McQueeney said all three commissioners agreed to cancel the public hearing.

Commissioner George O'Donnell said in a phone interview the commissioners felt the impact fees warranted further study before the proposed ordinance goes to a public hearing and they want to take a close look at alternative funding sources.

"We want to be fair with everybody," McQueeney said.

McQueeney and O'Donnell said the commissioners have heard from people on both sides of the issue. Business owners believe the proposed fee increases are too harsh. Other residents believe the commissioners should follow the advice of Tischler & Associates, the consultants who did a report that explained the process for calculating "justifiable impact fees." The fees would go toward capital improvements in five areas: public schools, community parks, law enforcement, fire stations and apparatus, and emergency services communications.

The proposed fee schedule lists five separate fees for two categories of residential development and three separate fees for 12 categories of non-residential development.

The total overall fee for single-family homes and mobile homes would be $6,854 per dwelling, while the total fee for all other types of housing would be $4,303 per dwelling. The total fee for non-residential development ranges from a low of 52 cents per square foot of floor area for an institutional development to $1.90 per square foot of floor area for a commercial project or shopping center that is 50,000 square feet or less.

McQueeney said he felt some of the commercial impact fees were "a little out of whack." Commercial development is something that should be encouraged, he said, because it increases the tax base and provides jobs for people. He said some people have told him the proposed residential impact fees would hinder efforts to bring affordable housing to the county. McQueeney said some people are concerned that Queen Anne's County "is becoming an elite community."

The county has had an impact fee for schools and emergency services since 1991. The school impact fee applies countywide to five categories of residential development - from $765 per dwelling for a multi-family apartment to $2,280 per dwelling for a single-family home. The emergency services fee - $55 per dwelling for all types of housing and 15 cents per square foot of floor area for non-residential development - only is levied in Kent Island and the Grasonville and Queenstown areas. 

The news release announcing the commissioners' vote to cancel the hearing on the proposed impact fee ordinance said, "Impact fees are not a general fund-raising mechanism, but one-time payments used to fund capital improvements needed to accommodate new development." The newly proposed impact fee would be among the highest in Maryland and by far the highest on the Eastern Shore.

"We have listened to the outcry from many citizens, including members of the Chamber of Commerce, who have indicated this proposed new fee will negatively affect economic development in the county," O'Donnell said in the news release.

"We have said all along that while we intend on raising the impact fee, we want to do so while not negatively affecting the economic development of our county," Commissioner Marlene Davis said in the news release.

The commissioners are asking the public and business community to submit comments and suggestions before a revised impact fee ordinance is reintroduced.

O'Donnell said suggestions so far have included a fire tax and a tax on boat slips. 
©The Star Democrat 2001