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Board of Commissioners <br />Page 2 <br />June 2 6 , 19 9~6 _ <br />Commissioners are directed in that Section to review a report <br />(known as the Technical Report) annually to determine "if, within <br />each benefit area (school district), all areas of new <br />construction are being benefitted by the fees." If the Board of <br />Commissioners determines areas of new construction are not being <br />benefitted, then it is empowered to adjust the impact fee <br />accordingly. The County has gone through such an annual <br />adjustment process, concluding most recently with the May 28, <br />1996 public hearing and adoption of revisions to the Impact Fee <br />Ordinance on June 3, 1996. It is my opinion that this adjustment <br />process can happen more often than annually and that the Board <br />could direct such a review at any time. Following any such <br />review a report would be prepared and presented to the Board of <br />Commissioners. The Board could then call for a public hearing to <br />consider changes in the Impact Fee Ordinance. Prior to the <br />hearing the Board must cause notice of the hearing to be <br />published once a week for two calendar weeks.- The first <br />publication can be not less than 10 days nor more than 25 days <br />before the date fixed for the hearing. <br />As you know, the impact fee is supported by the Technical <br />Report.. Originally, it included in its analysis all existing <br />housing, derived from the latest census data. That data was <br />updated in an August 8, 1995 study focusing only on new housing <br />units. This study resulted in new student generation rates which <br />were in part the basis for the increase in the Chapel Hill- <br />Carrboro School System impact fee from $1,500 to $3,000 approved <br />on June 5, 1996. All new residential housing units, including <br />for example those in the Carol Woods Retirement Center, were <br />included in the data base for the purpose of calculating the <br />student generation rate presented in the August 8, 1995 report <br />and used in the Technical Report calculation of the permissible <br />impact fee. Any decision to exclude classifications of housing <br />.because of an actual or perceived lesser impact on the school <br />capital needs would call for a recalculation of the student <br />generation rate and the Technical Report. <br />Further staff analysis of this seniors-only affordable <br />housing project'could result in a conclusion that some of that <br />work could be avoided, at least for the purpose of determining <br />whether this classification of housing should be exempt from <br />school capital impact fees. Among-the things that staff will <br />look at will be: (1) the period of affordability and seniors- <br />only limitation compared with the period the housing could impact <br />school capital needs; (2) the ability to "buy out" the project <br />limitations (affordability and seniors-only) and convert the <br />• project to a "market one." <br />10 <br />