§ 22-9. Waiver or deferral of impact fees for very low and low income housing.

(a)

This section is included in order to comply with the provisions of F.S. Ch. 420, and F.S. § 163.3177(6)(f), to encourage the provision of housing for very low and low income families.

(b)

When an application for a building permit or final development order is made, the county manager may waive the impact fees required by this chapter according to the following graduated scale if the county manager finds that the proposed development will provide housing that is affordable for families that meet the following specified income classifications:

(1)

A housing unit which will be affordable to a low income person as defined by F.S. Ch. 420, fifty (50) percent waiver of the impact fees for that housing unit.

(2)

A housing unit which will be affordable to a very low income person as defined by F.S. Ch. 420, seventy-five (75) percent waiver of the impact fees for that housing unit.

(c)

Any such waiver shall be only for that portion of the development that meets the minimum income criterion. The county shall not increase the amount of the impact fees payable under this chapter to replace any revenue utilized from another revenue source because of the waiver granted under this subsection.

(d)

Any such waiver shall be conditioned upon the applicant entering into a recapture agreement with Lake County. The agreement shall provide for the recapture of the waived impact fees upon the sale or other transfer of the property to a person who does not meet the minimum income and asset criterion listed above if the sale or other transfer is made within five (5) years from the date the waiver was granted by the county manager. Such recapture agreement shall be recorded in the public records of Lake County and shall obtain priority status as a lien holder subject only to the lien of a first mortgage. The county manager is authorized to consent to subordination of the recapture agreement in the case that the first mortgage is being refinanced so long as the principal amount of the first mortgage is not increased.

(e)

When an application for a building permit or final development order for a single family home is made where the home is intended to be occupied by a qualified low or very low income individual, the county manager may enter into an agreement for deferral of seventy-five (75) percent of the impact fees until the time that the home is sold under the following conditions:

(1)

An agreement between the applicant and the county shall be entered into which shall be recorded in the public records of Lake County which shall have first priority lien on the real property involved in the full amount of the impact fees, without taking into account any waiver.

(2)

The maximum length of the deferral shall be for a twelve-month period commencing on the date of issuance of the building permit.

(3)

The agreement shall provide that any applicable impact fees shall be paid at the time of the closing and transfer of the property. If all impact fees are not waived at the time of closing and transfer of the property, any amounts due shall include interest at a rate of six (6) percent per annum for the time period from the date of issuance of the building permit until the time the impact fees are paid.

(f)

The Lake County Affordable Housing Advisory Committee, or any successor committee or board, shall review and make recommendations to the board of county commissioners on applications for waiver and/or deferral of impact fees received pursuant to this section for multi family developments.

(g)

Upon such waiver, the board shall identify, on the record, the source of county funds that will be used to pay the impact fees for the services or facilities that would otherwise have been paid for by the development that received the waiver. Should no funding source be available, or should an available funding source be inadequate to cover the total amount of the impact fees that are being waived, the waiver shall not be granted unless or until funding becomes available.

(h)

The county manager or designee shall maintain a list of all applications for, and approvals of, waiver or deferral of impact fees for very low and low income housing. Applications shall be recorded in the order of the date of their receipt by the county manager or designee. In the event that a lack of funding or inadequate funding results in a temporary halt to the granting of impact fee waivers under the preceding paragraph, projects shall be granted waivers at the time funds become available in accordance with their place on the list.

(Ord. No. 2007-60, § 1, 12-11-07; Ord. No. 2009-33, § 3, 6-23-09)