Administration of downtown development supplemental fee

(a)

Collection of downtown development supplemental fee. Downtown development supplemental fees due pursuant to this article for administration fees and DRI/master plan recovery fees shall be collected by the planning and zoning department at the time of zoning permit or at any time prior to issuance of a building permit. Downtown development supplemental fees due pursuant to this article for transportation impacts shall be collected by the planning and zoning department at any time prior to issuance of a building permit (except as specified in section 13-55).

(b)

Transfer of funds to finance department. Upon receipt of downtown development supplemental fees, the department of planning shall transfer such funds to the city finance department which shall be responsible for placement of such funds into separate accounts. All such funds resulting from the collection of the supplemental fees shall be deposited in interest-bearing accounts in a bank authorized to receive deposits of city funds. Interest earned by each account shall be credited to that account and shall be used solely for the purposes specified for funds of such account.

(c)

Establishment of and maintenance of accounts. The city finance department shall establish separate accounts and maintain records for each account into which the downtown development supplemental fees that are collected can be segregated by each of the three fee components.

(d)

Maintenance of records. The city finance department shall maintain and keep adequate financial records for each account which shall show the source and disbursement of all revenues, which shall account for all moneys received, and which shall ensure that the disbursement of funds from each account shall be used solely and exclusively for the provision of projects specified in the downtown development orders, the administration fee and the DRI/master plan recovery fee. In connection with capital improvement projects, funds may be used for planning, design, construction, land acquisition, financing, financial and legal services, and administrative costs.

(e)

Refund of downtown development supplemental fee.

(1)

The current owner of property on which a downtown development supplemental fee for transportation mitigation and air quality has been paid may apply for a refund of such fee if: the city has failed to encumber or spend the collected fees by the end of the calendar quarter immediately following six years of the date of payment of the fee, or the building permit for which the transportation mitigation or air quality fee has been paid has been terminated or expired for non-commencement of construction; or the project for which a building permit has been issued has been altered resulting in a decrease in the amount of the transportation mitigation or air quality fee due. Downtown development supplemental fees paid for administration and DRI/master plan recovery are not refundable.

(2)

Only the current owner of property may petition for a refund. A petition for refund shall be filed within one year of any of the above-specified events giving rise to the right to claim a refund.

(3)

The petition for refund shall be submitted to the city manager or his or her duly designated agent on a form provided by the city for such purpose. The petition shall contain a notarized affidavit that petitioner is the current owner of the property; a certified copy of latest tax records of Metropolitan Dade County showing the owner of the subject property; a copy of the dated receipt for payment of the fee issued by the city's planning, building and zoning department, and a statement of the basis upon which the refund is sought.

(4)

Within one month of the date of receipt of a petition for refund, the city manager or his or her duly designated agent must provide the petitioner, in writing, with a decision on the refund request. The decision must include the reasons for the decision including, as may be appropriate, a determination of whether the collected fees have been encumbered or spent in accordance with the requirements of this article. If a refund is due to the petitioner, the city manager or his or her duly designated agent shall notify the city's finance director and request that a refund payment be made to the petitioner.

(5)

Any money returned pursuant to this subsection shall be returned with interest at the rate of three percent per annum.

(6)

Petitioner may appeal the determination of the city manager to the impact fee board of review subject to the time limitations and procedures for appeals to that board set forth in section 13-16 of the City Code.

(f)

Annual review and modification. The city shall annually review downtown development supplemental fee ordinance procedures, assumptions, formulas, and fee assessments and make such modifications as are deemed necessary as a result of:

(1)

Development occurring in the prior year.

(2)

Amendments to the development order.

(3)

Changing needs for facilities and/or services.

(4)

Inflation and other economic factors.

(5)

Revised cost estimates for public improvements and/or services.

(6)

Changes in the availability of other funding sources.

(7)

Such other factors as may be relevant.

(Ord. No. 12678, § 2, 4-28-05; Ord. No. 13703, § 2, 10-26-17)