Although the City intends for City staff to review applications to the extent feasible, the City may retain the services of independent technical and legal experts of its choice to provide technical and legal evaluations of permit applications. The third party experts shall have recognized qualifications in their fields. The applicant shall pay the cost for any independent consultant fees through a deposit, estimated by the City, paid within ten (10) days of the City's request. When the City requests such payment, the application shall be deemed incomplete for purposes of application processing timelines until the deposit is received. In the event that such costs and fees do not exceed the deposit amount, the City shall refund any unused portion within thirty (30) days after the final permit is released or, if no final permit is released, within thirty (30) days after the City receives a written request from the applicant. If the actual costs and fees exceed the deposit amount, then the applicant shall pay the difference to the City before the permit is released. (Ord. 596, 5-24-2019)