Oceanside might double developer housing fee
Oceanside plans to nearly double the fees it charges residential developers who don’t include affordable housing in their projects.
A review by the city’s consultant, David Paul Rosen & Associates, showed the city’s fee of $8.62 per square foot is among the lowest in San Diego County. The firm’s economic analysis showed a fee between $30 and $45 per square foot would be justified in Oceanside.
However, city staffers recommended a more modest increase, to $15 per square foot.
A larger fee could have “a cascading effect” that hurts the housing market, Housing and Neighborhood Services Director Leilani Hines said in a presentation Tuesday to the Oceanside Housing Commission.
“We’re walking a fine line,” said Hines.
The city needs to consider the costs of building affordable housing, how the fee will affect development, and how much of the costs will be passed along to the renter or homebuyer. Some commissioners said the fee should be higher. “Low fees mean projects don’t get done,” said Commissioner Shelly Parker. “It would be better to raise it past the $15 because that would give us more money to build something or force the developer to build it.”
A representative of the Building Industry Association of San Diego acknowledged the need to increase the fee, but said all mandates drive up costs and asked for the new amount to be phased in over three years. Commissioner Larry Kornit said he would prefer to see the full increase effective immediately.
Hines said city staffers will consider the commission’s suggestions before taking the idea Oct. 5 to the City Council.
Oceanside has about $10 million in its housing in-lieu fund, she said. The city recently loaned $3.5 million from the fund to a company building The Greenbrier Village Apartments on Greenbrier Drive, a 60-unit complex for people who are homeless or in danger of becoming homeless.
Low-interest loans of the in-lieu funds are repaid to the city by the developer, so the money can be used again to create more affordable housing.