By Eric Curl
Dec. 10, 2024 – Since the city of Savannah’s development impact fee program began on July 1, 2023, the city assessed almost $5.6 million in fees, according to information provided to Savannah Agenda on Dec. 3. The city reportedly collected more than $2.9 million, with almost $2.7 million in outstanding fees due.
The Savannah College of Art and Design was assessed the highest fee for the student housing complex the nonprofit university is building at 703 Louisville Road west of the downtown Historic District. SCAD is being billed $644,546 for the project, according to city officials.
The university issued a statement regarding the fee on Friday that states:
“The City of Savannah has always set a high standard for SCAD’s improvement of infrastructure. This includes stormwater infrastructure, road and sidewalk improvements, water and sewer development. With the Louisville Road project, SCAD is spending approximately $2 million to construct public stormwater and streetscape improvements in the area, this is in addition to any impact requirements. The entire city will benefit from these improvements.”
The fees are paid after a development receives a certificate of occupancy and the fee program was implemented in a phased introduction. In the first year, developments were charged 50% of the fee. This year, invoices were increased to 75% of the assessed fee during the second phase.
The city is using the revenue raised by the impact fees to support improvements to parks and recreation, public safety facilities and road infrastructure in new growth neighborhoods. Impact fee supported projects include the Tide to Town Trail, New Hampstead fire station and the Stiles Avenue widening, as detailed in a 5-year spending plan adopted by the council last month. The majority of fees assessed were for single-family and townhouse development.
At least one developer has some concerns about the fee.
On Monday, the Rhino Collective issued a statement to Savannah Agenda that included a call for the city to reevaluate the fees. The development group’s planned 41-unit apartment complex at 2613 Montgomery St. is among the highest assessed projects, with a $83,110 fee. The Rhino Collective, which includes restauranteur Ele Tran, has a number of developments in the works, including the planned renovation the former East Side Theater at 718 E. Broad St. and construction of an adjacent apartment complex, as previously reported.
The development group’s full statement reads:
“At The Rhino Collective, we are proud to call Savannah our home. As residents, business owners, and members of this vibrant community, we are deeply committed to its well-being and growth. We have chosen this city as the place to live, raise our families, and build our futures. Our dedication drives us to actively engage with the challenges facing Savannah’s infrastructure and to seek meaningful solutions that benefit all. As developers, we are committed to fostering a more affordable and accessible housing landscape. However, the current implementation of impact fees presents significant challenges to this mission. These fees, as currently structured, create barriers that discourage development and hinder efforts to provide the affordability and availability of housing that our community urgently needs. We believe it is essential to reevaluate the approach to impact fees, ensuring they align with the shared goal of enhancing Savannah’s growth while addressing the city’s housing needs. By working together to create more effective and balanced strategies, we can continue to contribute to the prosperity of what we believe is the best and most beautiful city in the nation.”
Pinyan/Procida’s planned affordable housing complex at 1700 Drayton St. — property the city sold to the development group for the housing development in 2021, was also among the highest assessed projects. The company paid a $81,475 impact fee for the project, which is to include 42 affordable apartments. That payment came before the Savannah City Council’s approval on Nov. 7 of a 25% reduction in the payment of impact fees for affordable housing projects.
The top projects assessed since the impact fee program began are:
- Hotel (2002 Chatham Center Drive) – $50,121.96
- Warehouse (189 Knowlton Way) – $59,859.83
- Hotel (63 Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.) – $77,536.66
- Hotel (2002 E. President St.) – $77,857.11
- Multifamily (1700 Drayton St.) – $81,475.79
- Multifamily (2613 Montgomery St.) – $83,110.69
- Manufacturing (301 Four Lakes Parkway) – $130,396.79
- Warehouse (180 Fort Argyle Road) – $165,634.24
- Industrial [4 individual permits] (100 Feldspar Drive) – $370,155.01
- Multifamily [8 individual permits] (480 John Carter Road) – $558,848.38
- Student Housing [2 individual permits] (703 Louisville Road) – $644,546.47
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