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Blaine park fees increasing for many developers Page 3 of 5 Blaine staff initially suggested a 5 percent fee increase for commercial at the Nov. 19 meeting, but the council did not want this to happen. "We're at the point where we're trying to attract business in general and I don't think raising that is going to help us at all," Council Member Jason King said. Mayor Tom Ryan said residents benefit more from these park developments than businesses. Council Member Russ Herbst said at the Nov. 19 meeting that he was getting some "push -back" from developers after they heard the proposed 5 percent fee increase and noted that St. Paul has a lower commercial park dedication fee than Blaine. Herbst said developers also face costs of putting in streets and paying fees to hook up to city sewer and water and installing these lines on their own properties. Herbst said developers will always be interested in getting projects done at the lowest cost possible. But for Herbst, staying competitive with other cities is important. "If you tack on too many fees, all of a sudden neighboring cities will be more competitive than us," he said. The council asked for park dedication fee numbers for Arden Hills. "That's really our competitor," Council Member Dick Swanson said. Arden Hills in early 2014 considered $4.75 per month in electric and natural gas franchise fees to provide a funding source for parks, trails and roads. When most residents rejected this idea, the Arden Hills City Council dropped it. In December, the Arden Hills City Council adopted a new park dedication fee model. Arden Hills Community Development Director Jill Hutmacher said it factors in that there are developed areas of the community where park dedication fees are needed tt replace equipment. But the city believes that land dedication for new parks will be needed within the 427 -acre Twin Cities Army Ammunition Plant. Ramsey County bought a portion of the old TCAAP site in April 2013 to demolish building and clean up land once used to develop ammunition during World War II. Hutmacher said Ramsey County has not determined whether it will sell all land to developers and leave it up to Arden Hills to get its parkland later or whether it will set aside certain land for future parks. The base park dedication fee for residential developers in Arden Hills is $5,300 per unit, Hutmacher said. 4 http://abcnewspapers.com/2016/01/10/blaine-park-fees-increasing-for-many-developers/ 1/11/2016