§ 17-180. Use of monies.

(a)

The commission hereby creates six (6) park impact fee trust accounts to correspond to the six (6) park districts: the one (1) countywide park district for countywide parks and the five (5) sub-county park districts for community parks and recreational facilities.

(b)

Park impact fees for countywide parks shall, upon receipt by the county, be deposited into the countywide park impact fee trust account, a separate trust account established and maintained by the county separate and apart from all other accounts of the county.

(c)

Park impact fees for community parks and recreational facilities shall, upon receipt by the county, be deposited into the appropriate community park impact fee trust account that corresponds with the community park district in which the residential construction is occurring. Each community park impact fee trust account shall be established and maintained by the county separate and apart from all other accounts of the county.

(d)

The monies deposited into the six (6) park impact fee trust accounts, as established in subsection (a) above, shall be used solely for the purpose of providing growth-necessitated capital improvements to the county park system within each corresponding park district including, but not limited to:

(1)

Land acquisition, including any cost of acquisition;

(2)

Fees for professional services, including but not limited to architecture, engineering, surveying, landscaping, soils and material testing, legal, appraisals, and construction management;

(3)

Design and construction documents;

(4)

Site development and on-site and off-site improvements incidental to the construction thereto;

(5)

Any permitting or application fees necessary for the construction;

(6)

Design and construction of parks and recreational facilities;

(7)

Design and construction of drainage facilities required by the construction of parks and recreational facilities or improvements thereto;

(8)

Relocating utilities required by the construction of parks and recreational facilities or improvements or additions thereto;

(9)

Landscaping;

(10)

Acquisition of capital equipment for the county park system;

(11)

Repayment of monies borrowed from any budgetary fund of the county which were used to fund growth necessitated capital improvements to the county park system as provided herein;

(12)

Payment of principal and interest, necessary reserves and costs of issuance under any bonds or other indebtedness issued by the county to fund growth-necessitated improvements and additions to the county park system subsequent to the effective date of this division; and

(13)

Costs related to the administration, collection, and implementation of the park impact fees.

(e)

The monies deposited into the park impact fee trust accounts shall be used solely to provide capital improvements to the county park system as necessitated by growth and shall not be used for any expenditure that would be classified as a maintenance or repair expense. A report will be prepared annually by the county reflecting the collection and expenditures of park impact fees by the county during the previous year.

(f)

Any park impact fee funds on deposit which are not immediately necessary for expenditure shall be invested by the county. All income derived from such investments shall be deposited in the corresponding park impact fee trust account and used as provided herein.

(g)

The county may retain up to one and one-half (1.5) percent of all park impact fees received or the actual costs of collection, whichever is less, as an administrative fee to defray the costs of administering the park impact fees.

(h)

The park impact fees collected pursuant to this division shall be returned to the then current owner of the property on behalf of which such fee was paid, if such fees have not been expended or encumbered prior to the end of the fiscal year immediately following the sixth anniversary of the date upon which such fees were paid. Refunds shall be made only in accordance with the following procedure:

(1)

The then present owner shall petition the county for the refund within one hundred eighty (180) days following the end of the calendar quarter immediately following six (6) years from the date on which the fee was received.

(2)

The petition for refund shall be submitted to the impact fee coordinator and shall contain:

a.

A notarized sworn statement that the petitioner is the present owner of the property on behalf of which the park impact fee was paid;

b.

A copy of the dated receipt issued for payment of the park impact fee or such other record as would evidence payment; and

c.

A certified copy of the latest recorded deed or a copy of the most recent ad valorem tax bill.

(3)

Within three (3) months from the date of receipt of a petition for refund, the impact fee coordinator will advise the petitioner and the commission of the status of the park impact fee requested for refund, and if such park impact fee has not been expended or encumbered within the applicable time period, then it shall be returned to the petitioner. For the purposes of this section, fees collected shall be deemed to be spent or encumbered on the basis of the first fee in shall be the first fee out.

(Ord. No. 06-10, § 2.05, 6-26-06)