§ 74-303. Special requirements for water impact fee and/or sewer impact fee.

(a)

Short name. This section may be known as "Special Requirements for Water Impact Fee and/or Sewer Impact Fee".

(b)

Purpose. The purpose of this section is to tailor the general common requirements of this chapter to the specific requirements of water and sewer impact fees. In addition, the board finds that the Florida Legislature has adopted growth management legislation which requires local governments to plan for and provide for capital infrastructure facilities such as water and sewer systems. The board has alternative, cumulative and supplemental authority to plan for and provide water and sewer systems under the laws of the State of Florida, including, but not limited to F.S. ch. 125, pt. II of Chapter 153, Chapter 164, and Chapter 380; Chapters 78-489 and 88-499, Laws of Florida, and Article 8 of the Constitution of the State of Florida. Collier County Land Development Regulations and Policies require persons to install, use, operate or employ interim water and/or sewer treatment facilities when such persons choose to develop lands in advance of the expansion of the regional sewer system within the district. Collier County Land Development Regulations and Policies require that owners of land connected to interim sewer facilities disconnect from such facilities and connect to the regional water and/or sewer system whenever the regional sewer system becomes available within the district. The board specifically finds that future growth within the non-excluded areas (as described in subsection 74-303(c)) should contribute its fair share to the cost of improvements and additions to the water and sewer facilities that are required to accommodate the use of such facilities within the nonexcluded areas.

(c)

Limitation on Applicability. Notwithstanding the general applicability provisions set forth in this chapter, water and sewer impact fees shall be limited as follows:

(1)

The imposition of water and sewer impact fees shall include only development on lands within the county water sewer district. The imposition and collection of water and sewer impact fees on geographic areas within the county water sewer district shall not take place until such time when connection to the regional water and/or sewer system is made. Lands required to connect or request connection to the regional water and/or sewer system, or which otherwise create a growth necessitated demand upon the regional water and/or sewer system shall be subject to the imposition of impact fees in accordance with this chapter. The following areas are provided exclusion from water and/or sewer impact fees since they are not served by the existing treatment capabilities of the regional water and/or regional sewer system:

a.

Those areas lying within the boundaries of the former Goodland Water District. Exclusion of those areas within the boundaries of the former Goodland Water District recognizes that this area is not presently planned to be served by the treatment capabilities of the regional water and/or regional sewer systems.

b.

Those areas lying within the Macro Shores, Unit 1, Sections 26 and 27, Township 52 South, Range 26 East, and recorded in Plat Book 14, Page 34 of the Public Records of Collier County, Florida. Exclusion of the Marco Shores, Unit 1, recognizes that this area is not presently planned to be served by treatment capabilities of the regional water and/or regional sewer systems.

c.

Those areas lying within the Key Marco Community Development District not planned to be served by treatment capabilities of the regional water and/or regional sewer systems.

(d)

Payment.

(1)

For purposes of the water and sewer impact fees, development shall be subject to the payment of impact fees under this section 74-303, upon the first occurrence of any of the following:

a.

Subject to subsection 74-201(d)(4), whenever any building or use which has not previously paid the applicable water and/or sewer impact fees under this chapter, or any predecessor ordinance in function, connects to the regional sewer system and/or the regional water system;

b.

Any building or use is connected, or interim water and/or sewer systems, is connected either directly or indirectly, to the regional water system and/or regional sewer system; or

c.

Whenever (i) any person applies for a building permit to construct (or place or install) a building or utilize a use or development improvement within the boundaries of the county water-sewer district, even though the subject lands are then receiving (or may in future receive) interim water and/or sewer services from a source other than the county water-sewer district, or (ii) do not then request any such service but are located in a place where it is physically possible to effect a physical interconnection with the respective regional water-sewer district's facilities. This last provision is to preclude the possibility of unauthorized interconnections without first paying to the county all then applicable water and/or sewer impact fees.

d.

Whenever a person applies for a building permit to alter an existing building, use or applicable improvement then connected to the regional water system and/or regional sewer system, if such alterations increase the demand or the potential demand on the regional water system and/or regional sewer system.

(2)

Subject to availability of funds, the county may enter into agreements to extend payment (offer installment payments) of water and/or sewer systems impact fees and associated costs over a period not to exceed seven years with owners of then existing buildings, structures or applicable improvements which are mandated to connect to the regional water and/or regional sewer systems. Prior to the county entering into any agreements to extend payments, and from time-to-time thereafter, the board shall identify a specific source of funds to be used relative to providing extended payment and the cost of such funds, including all expenses and costs incidental to obtaining or providing same, including interest at the interest rate that the board or the public utilities administrator will employ in offering extended payment with interest, and a reasonable estimation of the administrative costs of expenses associated with administering the extended payment alternative to the respective land(s).

a.

The county shall only enter into agreements to extend installment payment of the water and/or sewer systems impact fees and associated costs with owners of then existing buildings, structures or applicable improvements, mandated to connect to the regional water and/or regional sewer systems.

b.

The amount of payment, including any title verification expenses and a reasonable estimation of the cost and expense associated with providing an extended payment alternative, shall be paid in equal monthly payments with an annual interest rate as determined by the state comptroller's office. State document stamp and recording fees will be upfront costs borne by the owner and shall be paid in full at the time the extended payment agreement is executed. The interest rate charged shall be representative of the county's cost of funds, including all expenses or costs incidental to obtaining or providing same, if any. The interest charged should be adjusted during January of any calendar year in accordance with the then applicable ordinance (currently Ordinance No. 96-17 and No. 96-18) and shall be based on the county's cost of funds for the immediately preceding fiscal year. Failure to make such an adjustment in any given January shall not preclude retroactive adjustments of such interest rates.

c.

With the exception of the approval and execution of agreements, or an aggregation of related agreements, with a face amount in excess of $6,000.00, the board hereby delegates to the public utilities administrator the power and authority to enter into, modify, and release such extended payment agreements in conformance with the provisions of this chapter. The standard form agreement, and any other associated documentation, shall be in a form approved by the board and acceptable to the county attorney. No such standard form agreement shall be modified unless, in the opinion of the county attorney, there then exists a compelling reason to do so. Each such agreement shall be recorded in the official records upon approval of the public utilities administrator.

d.

For an agreement, or an aggregation of related agreements, to extend payment of impact fees and associated costs with a face amount in excess of $6,000.00, the county shall require the procedure and documentation for extending payments to substantially and reasonably conform to generally accepted and reasonably applicable commercial lending practices, including but not limited to the requirement for acceptable personal guarantees from one or all of the owners (or individuals owning a beneficial interest therein. At its sole option the county may contract with outside counsel or a servicing agent to prepare such documentation and to advise the county relative to conformance with generally accepted commercial lending practices and the costs of same shall be borne by the owner.

e.

Upon satisfactory payment of all principal, interest, and associated costs under an extended payment agreement, the county shall execute a satisfaction of lien and record same in the official records of the county. A copy of the recorded satisfaction of lien will be mailed (to the mailing address provided to the county by the other contracting party) by regular U.S. mail to the record owner within 60 days from receipt of full payment.

f.

In recognition that the payment of the water and/or sewer systems impact fees for then existing mobile home park or rental housing will generally, in some manner, be passed through to the occupants by an owner, and in recognition that if such pro-rata impact fee pass-through is collected as one single payment by the owner, that such a pass-through may cause financial hardship on these occupants, the board, in its sole discretion, may require the owner to covenant and agree, for the benefit of all affected persons, to pass through entirely and on the same terms all the benefits of any extended payment of the impact fees to the affected persons.

(e)

Use of funds. See section 74-203.

(f)

Impact fee rates. The water and sewer impact fee rate schedule incorporated in schedule 2 is hereby adopted and the water and sewer impact fees established in the water and sewer impact fee rate schedule are hereby imposed on all development as required in this chapter at a rate established under the applicable impact fee land use categories.

(g)

Annual mid-cycle water and sewer impact fee rate indexing. Beginning January 1, 2005, the county shall commence a three-year water and sewer (wastewater) impact fee update cycle pursuant to subsections 74-201(b) and 74-502(a) of this article. In each of the two mid-cycle years (between the formal three-year updates) the county shall implement indexing adjustments to each water and sewer impact fee amount by the percentages of increase set forth in the adopted "Collier County Impact Fee Indexing Study" prepared by Tindale-Oliver and Associates, Inc., in association with Robert W. Burchell, Ph.D., as updated annually, and in accordance with the index stated in the board resolution (or ordinance) that implements that indexing. Water and sewer impact fees shall be increased by indexing only to the extent that increases resulting from indexing exceed the assumed inflation rate used to calculate the then applicable impact fees.

(Ord. No. 01-13, § 1; Ord. No. 01-54, § 9; Ord. No. 04-79, § 1; Ord. No. 2006-26, § 5; Ord. No. 07-52, § 1; Ord. No. 07-57, § 4; Ord. No. 2009-64, § 1; Ord. No. 2012-03, § 1; Ord. No. 2013-63, § 6; Ord. No. 2014-05, § 1; Ord. No. 2015-17, § 4)