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A. Credits. Required impact fees shall be reduced by the following credits, where they apply:

1. Credit for Conveyance of Land for and/or Construction of Improvements. Whenever a development approval is conditioned upon a developer’s conveyance of land for and/or construction of specified system improvements, the developer shall be entitled to a credit against the impact fee that would be imposed for the value of the land or property interest conveyed and/or the actual cost of construction.

a. The land value or cost of construction shall be estimated at the time of development approval and shall be based on acceptable evidence and documentation. The evidence and documentation shall be reviewed and, if acceptable, approved by the Administrator. When land is proposed for conveyance, the person required to pay impact fees shall present property appraisals prepared by qualified professionals. If construction costs are estimated, the documentation shall be confirmed after the construction is completed to assure that an accurate credit amount is provided.

b. The amount of the credit shall be equal to the fair market value of the land conveyed and/or the actual cost of the system improvement constructed; provided, that:

i. The amount of credit granted shall not exceed the impact fee amount allocated by the City toward that cost of the improvement;

ii. The amount of credit granted shall not exceed the amount of the impact fee the developer is required to pay; and

iii. If the land value or construction cost is less than the calculated fee amount, the difference remaining shall be chargeable as an impact fee for the facility for which the land, system facilities, or improved system facilities were provided.

c. No credit shall be given for project improvements or for land or right-of-way devoted to project improvements. In certain cases a system improvement may function as a project improvement. Where a system improvement functions as a project improvement, the person who is required to pay impact fees shall only receive a credit for the amount of the improvement that functions as a system improvement.

d. Credit against impact fees otherwise due will not be provided until:

i. The construction, dedication or implementation is completed and accepted by the City of Redmond, or a jurisdiction which has an interlocal agreement with the City under the terms of this section, or the State, whichever is applicable;

ii. Acceptable financial security is received and approved by the Administrator of the City of Redmond, when applicable; and

iii. All design, construction, inspection, testing, financial security, and acceptance procedures are in strict compliance with the then current City of Redmond design and construction standards, when applicable.

e. Credit may be provided before completion of specified system improvement(s) if adequate assurances are given by the applicant that the standards set out in subsection A(1)(d) of this section will be met and if the developer posts a performance assurance device as provided below for the costs of such construction. The Administrator shall determine:

i. The performance assurance amount; and

ii. The form of the performance assurance, such as a performance bond, irrevocable letter of credit, or escrow agreement.

f. If the system improvement(s) will not be constructed, dedicated or implemented within one year of the acceptance of the offer by the Administrator, the amount of the performance assurance shall be increased by 10 percent compounded for each year of the life of the performance assurance. The revised performance assurance shall be reviewed and approved by the Administrator prior to acceptance of the performance assurance by the Administrator. If the system improvement(s) is not to be completed or implemented within five years of the date of the fee payer’s offer, the City Council must approve the system improvement(s) and its scheduled completion date prior to the acceptance of the offer by the Administrator.

2. Credit for Park, Recreation, Open Space or Trail Facilities. If a development activity includes park, recreation, open space or trail facilities which meet the requirements of this subsection A(2), then the applicant shall be entitled to a credit for that portion of the park, recreation, open space or trail facilities impact fee to be used for that park, recreation, open space or trail facility type to the extent that the park, recreation, open space or trail system satisfies the needs of the occupants of the development activity or the public.

a. The credit shall equal:

i. The reduction in demand by occupants of the development on the City’s park, recreation, open space or trail system that is met by the facility.

ii. The reduction in demand by the general public on the City’s park, recreation, open space or trail system that is met by the facility, if the facility is open to the general public and signs at the facility notify the public that they can use the facility. To be eligible for the credit in this subsection, the facility shall be located in an area which, based upon adopted level-of-service standards, is lacking in needed park, recreation, open space or trail facilities. Credit under this subsection A(2) shall not be given for the portion of any facility which provides a higher level-of-service than that set by the level-of-service standard for that facility.

b. The park, recreation, open space or trail facilities shall meet all of the following criteria to be eligible for a credit:

i. The area or facility shall function as a system improvement and not a project improvement as defined by this chapter, either because it is a system improvement or because it is a project improvement which relieves demand on the City’s park, recreation, open space or trail system.

ii. The facilities shall be equivalent to Redmond’s adopted standards for park, recreation, open space or trail facilities.

iii. The park, recreation, open space or trail shall be large enough to function as that type of park, recreation, open space or trail system to obtain a credit.

iv. The City may require that legally binding conditions be recorded in the real property records providing that the facility shall be used by the facility’s occupants or the general public. If these facilities are closed or converted to another use, the amount of the credit in current dollars shall be paid to the Redmond Finance Department or its designee or successor before the facilities are closed or converted.

3. Transportation Impact Fee Credit upon Change of Use. Except where exempt as provided below, where there is no increase in building or developed area (i.e., no increase in the gross floor area or gross leasable area as applicable), whenever the use of an existing building, structure, or parcel of land is changed in such a manner as to result in thirty or more net new p.m. peak hour vehicle trips over those generated by the existing use, the applicant shall receive a credit for the existing use of the building, structure, or portion of land and a transportation impact fee shall be paid for the additional or changed use. The impact fee shall be based upon the net increase in person miles traveled associated with the changed use over the person miles traveled associated with the existing use. The impact fee shall be calculated using the fee schedule set forth in RMC 3.10.100 unless an independent fee calculation study is submitted and approved as provided in RMC 3.10.120.

a. The following changes in land use shall be exempt from the requirement to pay an impact as provided above:

i. Changes in land use occurring as the result of a change in tenants of a mixed-use shopping center.

ii. Changes in land use occurring within a multi-building development occupied entirely by a single owner or single tenant, or changes occurring as the result of a lease or sublease within such a development from the single owner or single tenant to another business that provides services only to the single owner or single tenant or its employees at that location.

iii. Changes in land use occurring within a single building occupied entirely by a single owner or tenant, or changes occurring as the result of a lease or sublease within such building from the single owner or single tenant to another business that provides services only to the single owner or single tenant at that location.

4. Credit for Existing Development – Expansion. Whenever the alteration, reconstruction, remodeling, or replacement of existing buildings or structures results in additional gross floor area or additional dwelling units, the applicant shall receive a credit for the existing buildings or structures and an impact fee shall be paid only for the additional gross floor area or additional dwelling units. The impact fee shall be based upon the net increase in the number of units of development or portion thereof associated with the additional gross floor area or additional dwelling unit over the number of units associated with the existing gross floor area or dwelling units. The fee shall be calculated using the fee schedules set forth in RMC 3.10.080 and 3.10.100 unless an independent fee calculation study is submitted and approved as provided in RMC 3.10.120.

5. Transportation Impact Fee Credit for Vacant Structures. Whenever any existing building or structure or portion thereof for which an impact fee was not paid shall be vacant for a period of three years from and after April 16, 2011, if the vacancy began on or before April 16, 2011, or three years from and after the date the vacancy began, if the vacancy began after April 16, 2011, whichever is later, then any subsequent alteration, reconstruction, remodeling, or replacement shall require the payment of an impact fee for the entire building or structure without credit for existing gross floor area or dwelling units; provided, that vacant single-family dwelling units as defined in RMC 3.10.030.C.3 shall be exempt from this requirement. The fee shall be calculated using the fee schedule set forth in RMC 3.10.100 unless an independent fee calculation study is submitted and approved as provided in RMC 3.10.120.

B. Adjustments. The Administrator may adjust the required impact fees where the Administrator determines that one of the following circumstances exists and that the discount included in the impact fee formula fails to adjust for the error in the calculation or to ameliorate the unfairness of the fee:

1. The person required to pay the impact fee demonstrates that an impact fee was incorrectly computed; or

2. The person required to pay the impact fee demonstrates that unusual circumstances make the standard impact fee applied to the development unfair or unjust. These circumstances shall not be circumstances generally applicable to similar types of land uses or generally applicable to development activities in the vicinity. Unusual circumstances may include that the development activity will have less impact on the system improvement(s) for which the impact fee is imposed than the other development activities in the same category.

C. Time for Making Claim. Any claim of a credit or adjustment shall be made no later than the time of application for a building permit. If a building permit is not required for the development activity, the claim shall be made when the fee is tendered. Any claim not made when required by this section shall be deemed waived.

D. Transfer. Credits or adjustments shall not be transferable from one property, project, or development activity to another without the approval of the Administrator. (Ord. 2610 § 1 (part), 2011: Ord. 2587 § 2 (part), 2011).