SAFFORD — The Safford City Council is being asked to continue giving land developers a financial break.
At Monday’s meeting, the council will take up the issue of whether to extend the waiver of building permit fees for another year.
In 2019, following three years of small growth in new home construction, the City Council voted to waive single family building permits, reimburse 50 percent of water capacity fees, reimburse 50percent of water meter fees, and continue a 100-percent sewer capacity fee waiver for residential customers who abandon an existing septic tank and connect to the city’s sewer system.
Following that action, the city saw a 54-percent increase in new single-family home starts, climbing from 26 in 2018 to 40 in 2019.
The City Council continued the fee waivers in 2020, which, despite the pandemic, saw new home starts stay virtually flat, going from 40 in 2019 to 38 in 2020.
If the council agrees to continue the fee waivers, developers must meet conditions to qualify, including:
• Work authorized by that building permit shall commence within ninety (90) days after permit issuance
• Required inspections shall occur before the expiration of each ninety (90) day time period. If the work authorized by that building permit is not commenced or has been suspended for a period exceeding 90 days, the building permit will be revoked
• The single-family residential home must be completed within one year of the permit being issued
• The single-family residential home must be built within the city or newly annexed areas of the city
• All public infrastructure to service the new home must be in place or be built in conjunction with the home
The Safford City Council meets Monday, July 26, at 6 p.m., in the library’s program room.
