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• Water tanks supported directly upon grade
<br />• Sidewalks and driveways that are not part of an accessible route
<br />• Decks and platforms not more than 30 inches above adjacent grade
<br />• Painting, papering, tiling, carpeting, cabinets, countertops, and similar finish work
<br />• Temporary motion picture, television, and theater stage sets and scenery
<br />• Prefabricated swimming pools installed entirely above ground accessory to dwelling units [... ] not exceeding
<br />5,000 gallons in capacity and 24 inches in depth
<br />• Window awnings supported by an exterior wall that do not project more than 54 inches [... ]
<br />• Movable cases, counters, and partitions not over five (5) feet, nine (9) inches in height
<br />• Agricultural buildings (defined in MS 16B.60)
<br />• Swings and other playground equipment
<br />• For any potential gas, plumbing, and electrical exemptions, see MSB Chapter 1300
<br />Establishing Fees
<br />The Code states that the City shall adopt a fee schedule through the proper legal means. In addition, the Code states
<br />that the City must include a Plan Review Fee. The Base Fee is related to the administration and inspection of the
<br />permit. The Plan Review Fee is specific the the review of plans submitted with the permit. The maximum Plan
<br />Review Fee the City can charge is 65% of the Base Fee. The City should regularly review so that they are fair,
<br />reasonable, and proportionate to the actual cost of the service for which the fee is imposed. Finally, the Code states
<br />that the permit fee shall be based on valuation of the project, with certain exceptions. Although the City must base
<br />its fees on valuation, the City does have flexibility to adjust how much it charges based on valuation.
<br />The Code states that minor work is exempt from fees. The Code also states that the following may be charged a
<br />fixed -fee:
<br />• 1 and 2 family dwelling maintenance permits for roofing, siding, windows, doors, or other minor projects
<br />• Plumbing, mechanical, electrical, or other building service equipment systems
<br />• Replacement of a residential fixture or appliance cannot exceed the permit fee limitation
<br />The City charges fixed -rates on several types of permits, which are listed in the attached Rates and Fee Schedule.
<br />These fixed-rate fees are based on the required number of trips to inspect the project. The fixed-rate is intended to
<br />cover the City's expense to receive the permit, enter the permit into the software system, schedule inspections,
<br />perform inspections, and record inspection results. Staff would not recommend reducing the fixed-rate fees at this
<br />time. In fact, the City should explore further if the fees cover the entire expense related to the administration of
<br />these fixed-rate permits or look for ways to reduce the expense by streamlining the process, discussed later.
<br />Additionally, the City was audited within the past 3-4 years in regards to fees collected. Based on the number of
<br />fixed-rate fees that the City was charging, the State Building Official's office responded that they would not support
<br />additional fixed-rate fees beyond what the City was already collecting.
<br />Staff will present a sample single-family construction to illustrate the costs associated with processing a new
<br />construction permit at the Work Session. It appears that the City is generally charging fees commensurate with
<br />expenses. A typical single-family dwelling will require approximately 15 inspections related to the Code, with
<br />another 4-5 related to other requirements. A majority of these inspections are performed by Building Division Staff;
<br />however, inspections such as topsoil, landscaping, erosion control, and water meter are performed by other Staff
<br />members. Also, the industry standard is to factor an approved inspection rate of 90%-95%. Other improvements
<br />such as basement finishes and deck construction do add to the valuation of the project, and do have a correlation to
<br />the number of required inspections. Expenses related to the inspection include not only inspection time itself, but the
<br />general overhead to support the inspection.
<br />In addition to the expenses above, the City should calculate additional costs for general City management attributed
<br />to providing the Building Division. These expenses include, but are not limited to, IT services, human
<br />resources, financial services, fuel and maintenance costs, general City Management, management of inspection
<br />contracts, supervision of Staff, and availability of Building Division Staff to be available for general questions. For
<br />this analysis, it is helpful to arrive at an overall annual cost and compare that to the number of permits issued and
<br />inspections performed on an average year. Staff will provide a more detailed analysis of these costs attributed to the
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