by SC Reporter Emilie Alfino
Raftelis Financial Consultants presented Sanibel City Council with its evaluation of the current Building Department Fees and presented its report for consideration by the City
Pursuant to Raftelis’ agreement with the City, they are recommending a new fee schedule for the City’s building services fees.
The study’s objectives were to identify the cost of providing service (“revenue requirements”), evaluate the ability of building fees to fund revenue requirements, and update the schedule of fees and charges.
Permits processed each year vary by construction activity. They are not predictable as they are affected immediately by the economy and weather events. Rates were last adjusted in November 2022 when there was a 50 percent reduction for hurricane emergency repair permits.
City staff requested that Raftelis analyze the possibility of condensing and simplifying the rate structure for key building permit fee services. Those key permit service fees include electrical, plumbing, mechanical, and gas building services activities. These permits are some of the most commonly incurred services (and the receipt of permit fees) by the City.
In the development of rates to be charged for any type of service, it is useful to review the rates charged by neighboring jurisdictions for similar services to provide additional information to the City.
The consultants prepared a rate comparison of neighboring jurisdictions to evaluate market relationships. For residential development of a 3,500 square-foot home valued at $973,000, Sanibel’s existing rate is $10,703, compared to $3,942 for Charlotte County, $2,898 for Marco Island, and $6,620 for the city of Fort Myers. The consultant’s proposed rate for Sanibel would be $7,350.
Vice Mayor Mike Miller said, “This is really complicated stuff.”
Councilmember Holly Smith agreed, “This is really complicated. I think now we need to have more of a reduction. Mine (fee) so far is $22,000, not a new building but restoration after the hurricane. We need to start to tighten our belts. I still think there’s room, especially compared to other communities. I want to look at how we can continue to reduce. I would like to see more information.”
The consultant’s report proposes lower rates; they are not recommending an increase. In a fee rate proposal comparison, they showed the fee schedule for a 6,627-square-foot home valued at $1.6 million with a total fee of $16,853 currently, and with a proposed fee of $13,917.
Mayor Richard Johnson said, “This begs the question, how can we be more efficient in the job that we’re doing? How are they doing this when we see our fees are so much higher than these other municipalities? I would like to know much more about these other municipalities – what are they doing differently? How easy is it to go through the permitting process and how much does it cost? I would like to see us better substantiate the costs.”
City Manager Dana Souza said the City will revisit this in June.
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