(A) General provisions.
(1) A developer shall be entitled to a credit against development impact fees assessed pursuant to this chapter, applying the same discount rates applied to the maximum allowable impact fees presented in this chapter for the various impact fee categories, for town-approved monetary or in-kind contributions toward some or all of the public facilities included in the Town of Mount Pleasant Capital Improvements Plan that are eligible for impact fee funding.
(2) Development impact fees shall not be imposed on a fee payer or developer who has entered into a credit agreement with the town for certain contribution, payment, construction or dedication of land up to the cash value of the specific improvements identified within the agreement. Any difference between total development impact fees due, by impact fee category, for the development and the cash value of the executed credit agreement remain eligible for collection pursuant to the rules and requirements of this chapter.
(3)
Any request for development impact fee credit or reimbursement shall be submitted to the Director of Engineering and Development Services at the time of application consistent with other provision in this chapter. Town Council agreements may be submitted in advance of the application.
(B) Application for credit agreement.
(1)
The determination of the amount of any credit shall be undertaken through submission of an application for credit agreement, which shall be submitted through the Engineering and Development Services Department for review by the Director of Engineering and Development Services, or its designee.
(2) The application for credit agreement shall include the following information:
(a) The following documentation must be provided if the proposed application involves a credit for any cash contribution:
1. A certified copy of the development approval in which the contribution was agreed; and
2. Proof of payment (if already made); or
3. Proposed method of payment (if not already made).
(b) The following documentation must be provided if the proposed application involves credit for dedication of land:
1. A drawing and legal description of the land;
2. The appraised fair market value of the land at the date a building permit application is sought for the use of land, prepared by a professional real estate appraiser who is a member of the member Appraisal Institute (MAL) or who is a member of Senior Residential Appraisers (SRA); and
3. A certified copy of the development permit in which the land was agreed to be dedicated (if applicable).
(c) The following documentation must be provided if the proposed application involves credit for construction:
1. The proposed construction documents of the specific construction project prepared and certified by a duly qualified and licensed engineer in the State of South Carolina;
2. The projected costs for the suggested improvements, which shall be based on local information for similar improvements, along with the construction schedule for the completion of said improvements. Such estimated cost shall include construction or reconstruction of the project; the cost of labor and materials; the cost of all lands, property, rights, easements and franchises acquired; financing charges or interest prior to and during construction and for one year after completion of construction; costs of plans and specifications; surveys of estimates of costs and revenues; costs of professional services; and all of the expenses necessary or incidental to determining the feasibility or practicability of such construction or reconstruction.
(3)
Within 14 days of receipt of the proposed application for credit agreement, the Director of Engineering and Development Services, or its designee, shall determine if the application is complete. If it is determined that the proposed agreement is not complete, the Director of Engineering and Development Services shall send written notification to the applicant outlining the deficiencies. The Director of Engineering and Development Services shall take no further action on the proposed Application for credit agreement until all such deficiencies have been corrected or otherwise settled.
(4) Once the Director of Engineering and Development Services determines the proposed application for credit agreement is complete, it shall be reviewed within 30 days by a committee of designated staff composed of the Town Administrator, Town Chief Financial Officer, Director of Engineering and Development Services, and the Department Head for the impact fee category under consideration (either the Recreation Director for the recreation impact fee, the Fire Chief for the fire protection impact fee, the Director of Public Services for the municipal facilities and equipment impact fee, or the Director of Engineering and Development Services for the transportation impact fee). Together, this group will be known as the Development Impact Fee Credit Review Committee.
(5) If the application for credit agreement is approved by the Development Impact Fee Credit Review Committee, a credit agreement shall be prepared and signed by the applicant and the Town Administrator. It shall specifically outline the contribution, payment, construction or land dedication; the time by which it shall be complete, dedicated or paid, and any extensions thereof; and the dollar credit the applicant shall receive for the contribution, payment or construction against development impact fees. Any credit agreement shall be limited to the impact fee dollars owed for the project as defined in § 154.12(A) of this chapter, by the developer, for the impact fee category under consideration, unless Town Council decides to entertain a credit agreement in excess of fees owed that may be transferred to another project of the same developer in the same service area (see § 154.03(G) of this chapter for definition of service area). The agreement may also include provisions for rescinding the credit and issuing stop work orders if the dedication and/or work and/or construction are not timely accomplished.
(6) A fee payer affected by the decision of the Credit Review Committee regarding credits may appeal such decision pursuant to § 154.14(A) of this chapter.
(Ord. 17009, passed 4-3-17; Am. Ord. 18068, passed 10-9-18; Am. Ord. 20053, passed 9-11-20, effective 1-1-21; Am. Ord. 21040, passed 5-11-21)