The Lake Forest Park City Council voted Oct. 23 to establish a funding mechanism for the city’s transportation infrastructure.
The 6-1 council decision establishes a transportation benefit district (TBD) to fund improvements to city streets through fees and revenue sources decided on by the City Council. The independent taxing district can decide to impose an annual fee of up to $20 per vehicle at the time of vehicle renewal or impose a transportation impact fee on commercial and industrial buildings without voter approval. Revenue options including single year excess levies, vehicle tolls, up to a 0.2 percent sales tax and up to a $100 annual vehicle fee must be approved by voters.
“Every expert that we’ve talked to has said if you need the money this is an appropriate way to raise it,” Councilman Ed Sterner said at the meeting.
The city could potentially receive $214,000, based on an estimate from the Association of Washington Cities, if the council, acting in the role of the TBD governing board, implements a $20 vehicle fee. The funds would replace street funding that was lost due to a continuing reduction in gas tax revenues and a loss of the King County Local Vehicle license fees. City staff estimates the TBD funding method will cause the general fund to increase from $60,000 in 2008 to $180,000 annually in 2009 and 2010.
“What we’ve been doing is dipping into this extra fund and dipping into this extra fund, and what you realize is after a while I can’t do any other capital projects because I’ve now went through all my money,” Sterner said.
Citizens expect city roads to be maintained, Councilman Dwight Thompson said.
“One of key things I think our citizens are looking for is to maintain that quality of (street) service in the city, where a lot of other cities around us have not maintained those same services,” he said.
The decision will help ensure the revenue collected will stay in the city if King County decides to create a TBD. Some councilmembers viewed the decision as a pre-emptive approach, while Councilman Donovan Tracy questioned whether the ordinance establishing a TBD was adequate.
“I’m not arguing that we aren’t short on street funds and I’m not arguing that we don’t need the money,” he said. “I don’t think we can go out and tell our citizens we’re going to access this tax because we’re playing some kind of pre-emptive political game with the county even though it has some merits. And we also can’t tell our citizens we’re going to apply this special tax when we’re not really sure what streets and roads it’s going to apply to.”
Establishing a TBD is a “prudent choice,” Councilman Alan Kiest said before he voted in favor of the ordinance. The fee, he said, correlates with a person’s lifestyle.
“There will be people who do not participate by not having automobiles or those who participate in by the extent they choose to have automobiles,” Kiest said. “If we do not act, we risk some or all of the funds being withdrawn from the city of Lake Forest Park, never to be seen again.”
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