Marin County Municipal Code Ch. 15.07 Public Transportation Facilities Fees

This chapter may be cited as the Marin County public transportation facilities fees.

(Ord. 3348 § 2 (part), 2003)

In order to implement the goals and objectives of the Marin countywide plan, and to mitigate traffic impacts caused by future development in Marin County, certain public transportation facilities must be constructed. The board of supervisors has determined that fair-share public transportation facilities fees are needed in order to finance such facilities. In establishing the fees described in the following sections, the board of supervisors has found the fees to be consistent with the Marin countywide plan and, pursuant to Government Code Section 65913.2, has considered the effects of the fees with respect to the county's housing needs as established in the housing element of the Marin countywide plan.

(Ord. 3348 § 2 (part), 2003)

The following definitions apply in reference to this chapter:

A. "Build-out" means full development of properties within a defined area as permitted under the general plan, community plans, and applicable specific area plans.

B. "Development" means any new construction or use that requires the issuance of a building permit or other county land use entitlement.

C. "Development permits" means a building permit required by, and issued pursuant to, Title 19 of this code, or other county land use entitlements, including but not limited to, plan amendments, rezonings, master plans, precise development plans, use permits, design reviews, variances, or subdivisions required by Titles 20 and 22 of this code.

D. "PM peak-hour trips" means one-direction movements of vehicles during the afternoon hour when the maximum traffic congestion occurs.

E. "Public transportation facilities" means public facilities intended to improve mobility and reduce traffic congestion, such as traffic signals to manage traffic flow or additional lanes on roadways and at intersections to improve capacity.

F. "Reimbursement agreement" means an agreement between the county and a developer to refund an identified amount of money.

G. "Zone or benefit" means a specified sub-regional area within which fees are collected for construction of specified, needed public transportation facilities located within, and intended to benefit, that area.

(Ord. 3348 § 2 (part), 2003)

A. Public transportation facilities fees are established on issuance of development permits for development in the county to pay for needed public transportation facilities and improvements.

B. The board of supervisors shall, in subsequent board resolutions, set forth the amount of each such fee so established, describe the benefit and impact area on which the fee is imposed, identify the public transportation facilities to be financed, describe the estimated cost of these facilities, describe the reasonable relationship between this fee and the various types of new developments, and set forth time of payment. The established fee shall be based on the number of new PM peak-hour trips generated by a proposed development as determined by the latest Institute of Transportation Engineers Trip Generation Standards or an approved traffic study prepared by a qualified professional.

(Ord. 3348 § 2 (part), 2003)

The revenues raised by payment of the public transportation facilities fees shall be placed in separate and special accounts, and such revenues, along with any interest earnings on that account, shall be used for the following purposes:

A. To pay for planning, design, and construction of designated public transportation facilities as identified in the resolution establishing each fee;

B. To reimburse the county for public transportation facilities constructed by the county with other local funds from other sources;

C. To reimburse developers who have constructed designated public transportation facilities having size, length or capacity beyond that needed to mitigate impacts of the individual development project;

D. To pay for and/or reimburse costs of development and ongoing administration of the public facilities fees program.

(Ord. 3348 § 2 (part), 2003)

Developers may be required to construct public transportation facilities designated to be financed with public transportation facilities fees in lieu of paying a development fee. If a developer is required, as a condition of approval of a development permit, to construct a public transportation facility that has been designated to be financed with public transportation facilities fees and, if the facility has size, length, or capacity beyond that needed to mitigate impacts of that development, a reimbursement agreement with the developer shall be offered. The reimbursement amount shall not include the portion of the improvement needed to mitigate the burdens created by the development.

(Ord. 3348 § 2 (part), 2003)

This section authorizes the board of supervisors to establish zones of benefit by resolution. Fees collected from such zones will be expended only in those zones for area-specific public transportation facilities.

(Ord. 3348 § 2 (part), 2003)

A developer of any project subject to the fee described in Section 15.07.040 may apply to the county for a reduction or adjustment to that fee, or a waiver of that fee, based upon the absence of any reasonable relationship or nexus between the adverse impacts of that development and either the amount of the fee charged or the type of facilities to be financed. The application shall be made in writing and filed with the county public works director not later than: (1) fifteen days prior to the public meeting on the development permit application for the project; or (2) if no development permit other than a building permit is required, at the time of the filing of the request for a building permit. The application shall state in detail the factual basis for the claim of a waiver, reduction, or adjustment. The board of supervisors shall consider the application at the public meeting on the permit application or at a separate hearing held within sixty days after the filing of the fee adjustment application which ever is later. The decision of the board of supervisors shall be final. If the reduction, adjustment or waiver is granted, any change in use within the project shall invalidate the waiver, adjustment, or reduction of the fee.

(Ord. 3348 § 2 (part), 2003)

The fees imposed under this chapter shall be enforced and paid prior to the issuance of any building permits and prior to the use of the site in a way that generates additional PM peak-hour trips.

(Ord. 3348 § 2 (part), 2003)

In addition to the public transportation facilities fees to address cumulative build-out impacts, projects will also be responsible to provide project immediate public facility street frontage improvements and other project specific traffic mitigations and environmental impact mitigations as required in the project approval.

(Ord. 3348 § 2 (part), 2003)