City writes check for homebuilder impact fees

The city was set to get out its checkbook and write a reimbursement check to the tune of $3,219,472 to homebuilders as a result of impact fees collected by Maricopa. The decision to write the check was made at a recent City Council meeting.

It was back in May that the city lost its appeal of a verdict delivered in a lawsuit initiated by the Home Builders Association of Central Arizona. The lawsuit was on behalf of homebuilders who had development agreements in place with Pinal County before Maricopa’s incorporation in 2003.

The builders include Brown Communities, Canterra Homes, Centex Homes, D.R. Horton, Engle Homes, Hacienda Homes, Meritage Homes and U.S. Homes.

The fees were obtained from November of 2005 through June of this year for those builders affected by the development agreements. The development agreements in question affect the following subdivisions: Rancho El Dorado (phases I-III), The Villages at Rancho El Dorado and Province.

Since the city started collecting development impact fees in November of ’05, it has issued 631 SFR permits in the subdivisions in question and has previously refunded nine of those at the request of the builders. At the request of certain builders, in anticipation of litigation, the city has deposited in a separate escrow account the receipts from just over 400 of those permits.

The highest amount of permits went to Engle at 355. Sixty-seven permits were issued to both Meritage and U.S. Homes, with 64 to Canterra, 42 to Hacienda, 28 to Centex Homes, seven to DR Horton and one to Brown Communities.

The checks to cover those reimbursements were to be ready last Friday.

To see the court’s opinion, view.

Photo by Dave Thomas