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Prisoner escapes
‘Failure: A Love Story’ Oct. 21-22
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Bell Memorial Park opens New park fields finished ►►PAGE 4
October 14, 2015 | miltonherald.com | 75,000 circulation Revue & News, Johns Creek Herald, Milton Herald & Forsyth Herald combined | 50¢ | Volume 10, No. 41
Milton enacts impact fees Cost of new development rises By JONATHAN COPSEY jonathan@appenmediagroup.com
JONATHAN COPSEY/STAFF
Electric Avenue and Yacht Rock Schooner brought the music to the Brew Moon Octoberfest in Alpharetta Oct. 3.
Wet weekend puts chill on events Crabapple Fest, Brew Moon soggy By JONATHAN COPSEY jonathan@appenmediagroup.com NORTH FULTON, Ga. – It was a wet weekend Oct. 3-5, as rains began overnight Friday and continued throughout the weekend. This was also the weekend when numerous community events were to take place. Despite being a little soggy, many of the events carried on. In Milton, the annual Crabapple Festival took over the Crabapple crossroads with vendors and games. Despite a heavy rain over-
See EVENTS, Page 42
2011-15
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MILTON, Ga. – In a 4-2 vote, the Milton City Council approved enacting “impact fees” on new development in the city. Impact fees are imposed on new development of almost any kind by the city. They are to recoup costs the city incurs by having the new development – more police officers and firefighters and equipment, more roads to upkeep. The idea is that the new development pays a set percentage of its overall cost as part of its application to the city. There have been about 340 new home permits in the city since the beginning of the year, city staff said. Each of these new homes will have added upkeep of services from the city. Under the new rules, each new home will have more than $4,000 in fees to pay. Only residential units pay parks fees. The city’s consultant for the new rules, Bill Ross, helped draft the state’s laws on impact fees and has directly worked on two-thirds of the state’s impact fee programs. He said the fees were calculated based on the city’s future development plans – new roads, improvements and new parks – and how much they will cost and how much each resident needs to pay. “Everybody has to be calculated for their fair share,” Ross said. Community Development
Milton’s new impact fees • Single-family homes, apartments or townhomes $4,425 per dwelling • Light industrial — $0.98 per square foot • Hotel — $662 per room • General office building — $1.47 per square foot • Retail — $0.17 - $9.86 per square foot
Director Kathleen Field said the impact fees will only apply to new development that is not already in the approval process. A part of the discussion centered on whether the proposed fees for parks and recreation should be halved. For Councilmember Joe Longoria, he felt the proposed fees should not be touched. “There was a lengthy and logical process we went through to get these fees,” he said. “They represent the impact these projects have on our city. Either we believe in the numbers or we don’t. We came up with these fees based on the plan enacted.” If there are concerns over the fees, he said, the city’s future plans need to be reassessed. In the final approval, the parks fee was halved what was recommended, however the city will revisit the fee in April of next year. The fees were approved 4-2, with Councilmembers Longoria and Burt Hewitt opposed. Councilmember Bill Lusk was absent.
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