Impact fees rising for new development in Pahrump

The cost for new construction in Pahrump has now officially gone up following impact fee increases approved by the Nye County Commission, which went into effect as of Tuesday, May 7.

Covered in Nye County Bill Title 2024-01, the increases include fees for police station, fire station and park impact fees. As part of the bill, an entirely new impact fee for drainage and flood control was added to Nye County Code 15.32 as well.

When the subject was first discussed by the county earlier this year, there was some question as to why the street impact fees section of the code was the only one not proposed for adjustment. Nye County Planning Director Brett Waggoner explained during an April public hearing on the matter that this was because that specific fee has already seen increases over time.

“Street impact fees - the reason you don’t see that in here is, there is actually an automatic escalator that’s written into code and into NRS (Nevada Revised Statutes)… There is a formula on how much you can raise them that’s based on the CPI (Consumer Price Index),” Waggoner stated.

However, all other existing impact fees had remained same since 2005. Therefore, Waggoner said his department utilized the same Consumer Price Index method to determine the proposed increases for police, fire and park fees. He said the increases to these three areas of the code were fairly nominal, with fees for detached residential dwellings going up to $254 each for fire, $209 for police and $547 for parks while multi-family fees are now $193 for fire, $158 for police and $416 for parks per dwelling unit.

Fire and police impact fees for commercial development range depending on business type and size, ranging from $0.02 to $0.23 per square foot of floor space. The same fees for day cares, nursing homes and lodging businesses also vary depending on the per unit demand.

The biggest change to the code came in the form of the brand new drainage and flood control impact fees, which are quite a bit higher than the others.

“The one that is significant is the one that the board, at the time (of the 2005 adoption), chose not to adopt, which is a flood impact fee. It’s unfortunate, I mean, they are steep but, it definitely could have come in handy over the years, especially in the last few years that we’ve experienced,” Waggoner remarked.

The flood control fees were proposed at the same rate as those put forward in 2005, with no adjustment made in consideration of inflation. The reason, Waggoner said, was the department felt the fees as originally proposed were high enough as it was.

New residential development will now be charged $4,246 per detached dwelling unit while attached, multi-family or other residential development will be charged $1,673 per dwelling unit, for the county to use for drainage and flood control purposes. All commercial development will be charged $1.18 per square foot of floor area, regardless of commercial type.

“This is only for new construction, residential and commercial,” Waggoner emphasized. “If someone is replacing a manufactured home with a stick-built home or another manufactured home, they don’t pay the impact fees because it’s not a new impact.”

“That’s the whole idea that people need to understand,” commissioner Frank Carbone agreed. “This is for new impact to the area.”

Commission Donna Cox chimed in to add, “And this is a one-time thing when you go to get your building permits… It’s not something you pay by the month or pay by the year. It’s a one-time shot.”

When it came time to make the motion to adopt the bill, there was some hesitation among the board, prompting commission chair Debra Strickland to pass the gavel to vice chair Ron Boskovich in order to make that motion. Carbone offered a second and the bill was then adopted by a 5-0 vote.

To view Nye County Bill 2024-01 visit NyeCountyNV.gov and click on the “Newly Adopted Ordinances” link toward the bottom of the page.

Contact reporter Robin Hebrock at rhebrock@pvtimes.com