Agenda - Planning Commission - 04/20/2015 - Joint with EPB

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RELEVANT LINKS: Minn. Stat. § 505.03 subd. 3. Minn. Stat. §462.353 subd. 4 (b). Minn. Stat. §462.353 subd. 4 (e), (a). Sample fee schedule. Minn. Stat. § 462.353 subd. 4 (d). For subdivision applications for projects of any size, cities should require that an applicant provide the city with escrowed cash in an amount likely to cover the city's costs for reviewing, approving, and inspecting a project. In the alternative, cities may require some other type of security—such as a letter of credit—in an amount sufficient to guarantee coverage of the city's review costs. These requirements should also be stated in the subdivision ordinance. (1) Verification of plats and surveys When a city requires a plat to be submitted along with a subdivision application, cities have additional authority to seek reimbursement for city review costs. Cities are authorized to employ qualified persons, such as a surveyor, to check and verify surveys and plats and to determine the suitability of the plat from the standpoint of community planning. Cities may require the applicant to reimburse the city for such services. When the city uses a city employee to perform these reviews, the city may charge for these services based upon the employee's regular wage. (2) Fee requirements: accounting/management All cities are required to adopt management and accounting procedures to ensure fees are maintained and used only for the purpose for which they are collected. (3) Fee ordinances and fee schedules Generally, cities must adopt fees by ordinance. However, there is a statutory exception to this general requirement. Cities that collect an annual cumulative total of $5,000 or less of land use fees may adopt a fee schedule by ordinance or by resolution after holding a public hearing. Notice must be published at least 10 days before the public hearing. Cities that collect an annual cumulative total in excess of $5,000 of land use fees may also adopt a fee schedule if they wish, but they may only do so by ordinance, after following the same notice and hearing procedures. Jan. 1 is set by statute as the standard effective date for changes to fee ordinances. A city may set a different effective date, but the new fee ordinance must not apply to a project if its application for final approval was submitted before the ordinance was adopted. (4) Fee disputes If a dispute arises over a specific fee imposed by a city related to a specific application, the applicant may appeal the fee to district court. The applicant must provide notice to the city of the appeal by certified letter and place the disputed fee in an escrow account. League of Minnesota Cities Information Memo: 4/15/2014 Subdivision Guide for aties Page 14