Bylaw amendment ensures complicated applications pay for services rendered
City of Powell River council has updated its fee bylaw to take into account applications that may require extensive attention and time by city staff.
At the July 21 council meeting, councillor Rob Southcott said this is a housekeeping motion, with one significant change to the planning department services fees charges.
“There is an addition because some work is coming to the planning department that goes way beyond what the current fee structure can compensate the department for,” said Southcott. “There was a small addition that basically considers cost recovery of the planning department’s hours spent doing complex work.”
Councillor George Doubt said the main point of the bylaw is to make sure complex processing services provided by the planning department are paid for by the person making the application. He said one particular application that has been talked about is the proposed city annexation of property on Nootka Street, which is currently located in qathet Regional District.
“It would require extensive studies of roadwork, sewer, water systems, et cetera,” said Doubt. “It would be beyond what the normal cost is for the planning department. The main point of this bylaw is to make sure the planning department is paid for that work by the people who want it done.”
According to the revised bylaw, complex processing services are those that require additional staff time to process. The bylaw states that these services go beyond the scope of standard processing services associated with application processes listed in the bylaw.
The bylaw states that complex processing services can be provided by the city via a cost-recovery agreement, with costs to be paid by the proponent, in addition to the standard application fees, where applicable. When complex processing service requirements have been identified, the proponent will be advised by staff that services cannot be provided until a cost-recovery agreement with the city is signed and a security deposit has been received, according to the bylaw.
