Oct. 12 City Council Meeting Recap
Development Impact Fees, False Fire Alarms Ordinance
Changes May be Scheduled for Development Impact Fees
In order to strengthen the City’s ability to continue to offer high quality parks and recreation amenities to existing and new residents, the Rocklin City Council discussed the introduction of an ordinance that would:
- Update the Community Park Fee, and rename it the Park Improvement Impact Fee.
- Establish a new Trails Impact Fee.
- Restructure the existing Public Facilities Impact Fee into two separate fees – the Community and Recreation Facilities Impact Fee (for recreational facilities), and the Public Facilities Impact Fee (for general government facilities).
The Community Park Fee/Park Improvement Impact Fee is a development impact fee that is charged to developers per unit built so the City can build on park lands also dedicated to the City from these development projects. The current fee has not been updated in 20 years, is far below the actual cost of developing park land, and Rocklin has accepted dedication of more park property at this point than it can afford to develop.
Next, Public Facilities Impact Fees are used to provide additional facilities in Rocklin to support new development. In addition to community and neighborhood parks, the City has several community recreational facilities, such as the Rocklin Event Center and the Rocklin Community Center, which these fees provide some funding for. Public Facilities Impact Fees also help pay for facilities for police, fire and other public services. These have not been updated since 2005.
The item was continued and will be herd again at the Oct. 26, 2021, City Council meeting.
False Fire Alarm Fees Considered
Repeated responses to false fire alarms by the Rocklin Fire Department sap resources and take away from the Department’s readiness and responsiveness to actual calls for service, which in turn increases risk to the public. Reducing false fire alarm responses will help protect the welfare of city residents and the public.
Rocklin’s administrative fees include reoccurring false fire alarms, however, the Rocklin Municipal Code does not provide a mechanism for the Fire Department to enforce this fee. An ordinance was introduced to establish standards and controls to reduce incidents of false fire alarm incidents responded to by the Fire Department.
A second reading of the false fire alarm fee ordinance will be held at the Oct. 26, 2021, City Council meeting and, if approved, the new fees would be effective 60 days after approval.
See the Council item on false fire alarms.
View the full Oct. 12 City Council agenda with video links to discussions on each item.