Lompoc council reviews developer fee refunds, RV parking rules, tables both for further review | Government and Politics

During the Nov. 4 regular meeting, the finance department provided a detailed presentation on the feasibility of refunding development impact fees collected before the council voted to scale them back earlier this year.

Presenter Christie Donnelly, city management services director, explained that before Aug. 5, developers were charged impact fees covering at least a dozen infrastructure categories, including “parks improvements, park land acquisition, recreation centers, libraries, police and fire facilities, traffic signals, bikeways, streets, storm drains and refuse containers.”

After the council’s summer review, the fee structure was “dialed back by quite a bit” and now applies to only four categories — library, police, fire and refuse containers.

The city began charging developers the fees years ago to offset the cost of public facilities needed to serve new housing and commercial projects.

The rollback, she explained, was meant to make local development more financially viable while still maintaining essential public service funding.

However, some developers who paid under the old rates before August have since asked whether they could be refunded the difference.

Donnelly advised the council that refunds were not recommended and likely impermissible under state law, citing a risk of violating California’s ban on “gifts of public funds.”

“If we refund legally established fees, it could be argued that the city is providing a gift of public funds,” she said.

Council member Steve Bridge took issue with the rules and argued the lack of fairness to developers after learning that statute of limitations denies refunds from two years back, a city regulation that was briefly highlighted by City Attorney Jeff Malawy.

“I’m not sure what the path out of this is unless we just take the risk and say we’re going to asses all of them,” Bridge said.

The council next discussed possible amendments to Lompoc’s overnight recreational vehicle parking ordinance, which bans RV parking on public streets between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. unless the vehicle belongs to a resident with a permit for that block.

According to Malawy the ordinance bans the overnight parking of recreational vehicles on all streets within the city of Lompoc, and allows residents to park their RV on the street or on the block that they live on, provided they meet certain requirements.

Councilmember Victor Vega, who has pursued the topic, said residents have raised repeated concerns about inconsistent enforcement.

“We’re hearing from residents that they see RVs parked on streets all over town,” he said. “It’s becoming a quality-of-life issue. If we have an ordinance, we need to make sure it’s being enforced.”

During public comment, residents voiced frustration over both enforcement and the lack of alternatives for people living in RVs.

One speaker asked, “Do we actually sustain self-park, our safe parking in Lompoc with porta-potties and electrical outlets so people can plug in their generators or whatever have you?” 

He further stated that “certain neighborhoods are plagued by it” and asked how the ordinance was going to be enforced? “Who was going to enforce it? And what will be the penalties?”

Another resident urged the city to consider designated RV parking zones.

“It would be a really good idea to have a specific safe area that people can go and just park their RVs … with some modicum of a check-in area or there’s some kind of watchful eye,” she said.

Council members recognized the confusion about how the rules work and directed staff to return with a presentation offering more clarity for the public, and also identifying options for improved enforcement and possible safe-parking sites.

The council unanimously approved a number of consent items, including:

● Payroll and accounts payable totaling about $9 million

● Zoning and Housing Element updates aligning with the 6th-Cycle state plan

● Adjustments to two-hour residential parking and 72-hour enforcement rules, which prohibit the parking of any vehicle for more than two hours without a permit in any residential preferential parking district. The new ordinance establishes a residential preferential parking district on the 1200 and 1300 block of North L Street.

● A new ordinance establishing a minimum distance that a vehicle must be moved to avoid violation of a 72-Hour parking City code, and authorizing removal of vehicles in violation. The new ordinance also removes the need for an available shelter space or Safe Parking Program space in order to enforce the rule.

● Airport lease termination with Matthew Miller and new lease with Adam Clarke

● Establishing salary ranges for water regulatory compliance positions

● Contract approvals for park and filtration improvements

● Renewal of the city’s workers compensation administration contract

The council’s next regular meeting is scheduled for Nov. 18.