Fee Schedule Updates; Imihy
CITY OF HOPKINS
Memorandum
To: Honorable Mayor and Council Members
Mike Mornson, City Manager
From: PeggySue Imihy, Management Analyst
Date: August 10, 2021
Subject: Fee Schedule Updates
_____________________________________________________________________
Purpose
At the August 10, 2021, work session, staff will present regarding the current rate of a
variety of fees which are currently charged by the City of Hopkins and seek guidance on
if fees should be increased. This will include:
• Administrative fees such as Liquor License Amendments, Special Events
Permits, Transient Merchants, Temporary Signs/Sign Permits and Fences
• Other fees tied to specific departments such as fees related the Police
Department and Public Works
• Planning and Zoning fees and a comparison to neighboring communities’ rates
for similar fees
• Park Dedication fees and a comparison to neighboring communities
Staff is interested in receiving feedback from the Council on a proposed increase in fees
to be commensurate with staff and city resources used for corresponding applications.
Background and History
Over the past several months, Staff has begun reviewing fees charged by the city for a
variety of services and making changes to fees such as animal licensing, alarm user
permits, massage therapy licenses and massage therapy establishments to ensure that
the rate charged accurately reflected the amount of staff time required to process the
request. Over the last few months, several other areas, such as Liquor License
Amendments, Special Events Permits, Transient Merchants, Temporary Signs/Sign
Permits and Fences have been noted by staff as areas where fees to do not accurate
offset costs related to processing the application. For example, a permit to construct at
fence only costs $10, yet staff time and check processing fees cost significantly more.
While the goal is not to recoup all costs associated for services, Staff believes that it is
important to have fees more correctly aligned with what th e actual cost of the service
provided.
Other departments, such as the police department and public works are also currently
reviewing fees charged to ensure that they are fair, reasonable, and proportionate to the
service for which the fee is imposed.
Administration
In 2018, Staff begun this review process on planning and zoning fees but at that time
did not move forward with recommending changes, and like many cities fee increases
were not discussed during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic. Over the summer, staff has
restarted exploring whether fees related to planning and zoning applications correctly
reflect the amount of time required to process these applications. Additionally, staff
reviewed comparison cities to explore what other cities were charging for similar
applications.
Currently, the City Planner and the Planning and Economic Development Administrative
Assistant often spend anywhere between 10 and 30 hours on a single planning
application. This includes time spent on mailing and preparing public hearing notices,
preparing and presenting at the planning commission and city council, meeting with the
applicant and answering community questions about a development application. All of
the city’s fees cost less than $500 with most fees between $150-$350. A $300 fee for a
planned unit development application for example, only covers about six hours of the
City Planner’s time. Comparatively, this same fee costs $1650 in Edina, $5000-6000 in
Saint Louis Park, or around $2500 in Columbia Heights, North Saint Paul and Golde n
Valley. Staff recommends reviewing these fees and increasing them to be proportionate
to the amount of time and effort that is required to process the corresponding
application.
In addition to planning and zoning fees, Staff recommends doing a review of park
dedication fees charged per unit to ensure that the number charged is proportionate to
demand created by additional units. As the City continues to develop, Staff wants to
ensure that we can provide adequate parkland and amenities for residents. Curr ently,
the fee charged for residential development is $3000 per dwelling unit. Comparatively,
many cities charge between $3500 - $6000, depending on the city’s unique need for
park development.
Next Steps
If supported by the City Council, Staff will be gin working to evaluate how fees compare
to the actual staff cost related to the service for which the fee is imposed. Any proposed
changes to fees would be brought forward to future Council Meetings throughout the
fall.