Pima County could nearly double the fees it charges developers for each home under a recommendation from county administrator Chuck Huckelberry.
The county, whose government is seated in Tucson, currently charges developers an impact fee of $4,600 per residential unit to cover costs of roads and other infrastructure. Huckelberry plans to recommend raising that to $8,800.
The fees, which are passed along to homebuyers, should rise to cover the higher costs of city development, according to Huckelberry.
Opposing the idea is the Southern Arizona Homebuilders Association, which says the increase would create added hardships for an industry already hard hit by the housing recession.
The Pima County Board of Supervisors created the development impact fee ordinance in 1996 over the objections of the homebuilding industry and has increased it several times from the original $1,550.
