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SW8►DT Fee Review December 1, 2014 Page 7 This is purely a function of the high per-unit cost of providin c�vance svstems for low densitv development, similar to the costs of sanitary sewers. However, if Council wishes to reduce the trunk fees for low density development, a number of factors must be considered: a) Since the total cost of the stormwater system is fixed,reducing the share for low- density lots must be made up elsewhere (Raise the fee per acre for higher density?) b) An arbitrary `density' reduction factor might be added for the 2-acre and 5-acre zones to bring them down to palata.ble levels. T'he actual amount of development remaining to occur in the 5-acre zone is minimal, so the number of dollars ultimately collected may be relatively small no matter what the fee is set at. c) It might be somewhat less arbitrary to allow a 40%reduction in 5-acre zone fee (and perhaps a 20% reduction in 2-acre zone fee) if specified perimeter buffer easements are granted, which could tend to reduce the magnitude of regional ponding needed... Ultimately, in the original SW&DT ordinance adopted in December 2001, the Council chose to adopt a reduction based on buffer establishment placed in conservation easements, just for the 5-acre zone. This may have been an acknowledgement that the relationship between the value of lots 5-acres and larger and the per-acre fee, even after the equivalency factors have been taken into account, would be disproportional with the actual costs of needed infrastructure, and would result in an unreasonable fee burden for larger properties. It also may have been an acknowledgement that a significant portion of a 5-acre lot can remain undeveloped and unmowed while still allowing for the typical residential use, while typical residential use of 2-acre lots with amenities such as decks and patios, accessory buildings, pools, tennis courts, septic systems, etc. leaves little room for buffers to be established and maintained. It would be fair to say that the Lakeview development is creating non-typical 2- acre lots, with a substantial portion of each lot in conservation area. In many instances, less than 1 acre of non-conservation easement area will available for building purposes. These lots will not be capable of accommodating the level of amenities that might be found on a typical 2-acre lot. As a trade-off, the high percentage of conservation easement areas will have a positive impact on the stormwater systems and reduce the need for on-site ponding, thus reducing the on-site stormwater infrastructure costs. Keep in mind, however, that the SW&DT fee was established based on the need for regional ponding throughout the City. The Lakeview site is relatively `low' in the watershed (its stormwater leaving the site will discharge almost immediately