Town may charge higher building fees

Written by Jane K. Dove
Sunday, 01 November 2009 23:00

In an effort to raise revenue to help shore up Lewisboro’s troubled finances, town Building Inspector Peter Barrett said last Thursday that raising his department’s current estimate of cost of construction from the existing $100 to $150 or $200 per square foot would bring in significant additional funds.

“I have talked to surrounding towns and most of them use the $150 to $200 number,” he said. “We average over 300 permits per year. The increase to higher numbers would bring in a substantial amount of money.”

Building permits are required for everything from building a brand new house to finishing off a basement or adding a new deck.

The Ledger contacted Mr. Barrett on Monday for an explanation of how the higher estimated cost of construction figures would translate into more revenue for the town.

“If you have a 3,000-square-foot house to be built, $100 per square foot as the estimated cost of construction would translate into a house valued at $300,000,” he said. “Permit fees on the $300,000 house would be about 1%, or $3,000.”

Mr. Barrett said if you raised the estimated cost of construction to $150 per square foot, the estimated value of the house would be $450,000 and the town would get $4,500.

A $200 per square foot estimated cost of construction on the same 3,000-square-foot house would net $6,000 for the town.

Mr. Barrett said the 300 annual permit fee figure would be higher if work on the completion of the Oakridge condominium complex in Vista gets started. “This would obviously add even more revenue,” he said.

Mr. Barrett once again emphasized the need for him to keep his full staff, including one part-time worker. “A full operation is needed for timely collection of revenue, issuance of permits, inspections and everything else,” he said. “The loss of any member from our team really knocks us down.”

Terminology

Town Board member Peter DeLucia said it was important to get the right terminology for the increased fees. “We have to differentiate between brand-new construction, renovations and additions,” he said. “I’d like to see new construction get the higher rate and anything else get a lower rate.”

Town Supervisor Edward Brancati agreed. “We need to keep it simple, clear and easy for residents to understand,” he said.

Town Board member Dan Welsh asked Mr. Barrett the reason for the price differential. “Some things cost more to build than others,” he replied.

Returning to the issue of clarity, Mr. DeLucia said the building department’s fees should be based on “something concrete. “Maybe we should have one set of fees for work within the existing footprint of a home and another set for adding to the footprint.”

Mr. Barrett also agreed with the goal of simplicity. “I think we should just stick with two rates,” he said.

In the end, Mr. Brancati suggested fees of $200 for construction that created a new house or new footprint to an existing house, and $150 for “everything else.” His fellow board members agreed, but the matter was not put to an official vote.