impact fees

York County Council and the Fort Mill school district are to be congratulated for impact fees on developers for new home construction including apartments.

These officials recognize that developers, many out of state, cannot continue to build sprawling neighborhoods, pocket profits and leave the staggering costs of clogged roads and increased school enrollment and construction to existing homeowners.

Lexington County developers, as we all can see, are building as many homes as possible on small lots and leave the taxpayers to pay for a $365 million bond referendum for new schools, on top of new taxes and fees imposed on Town of Lexington and Lexington County taxpayers.

Continuing to let developers walk away with all the profits but no responsibility for increased school costs and road congestion is akin to letting your neighbor borrow your car and returning it without gas.

There’s no doubt, Lexington District 1 is experiencing unparalleled growth with a projected enrollment increase of 500+ new students a year for the next 30 years. This is the equivalent of 1 new school every year for the next 30 years.

Home owners cannot continue to pay for this uncontrolled growth. It’s time for impact fees on new development.

We don’t have impact fees because developers, through donations to elected officials, ensure that they can build at will and let taxpayers deal with the problems.

Businesses and commercial property owners pay a disproportionate share of the school tax of 6%. Homeowners pay 4%.

The district acknowledges this “unfair burden on small business owners…”

It is fair to require developers who create the problems to help pay for the costs of new schools and roads.

Lexington District 1 has two issues before the voters in November: We are asked to approve a new $365 million, 5-year building plan and elect a slate of school board candidates.

District 1’s great schools are why we have rapid growth of our community. To absorb this growth, we are faced with a dilemma: incur new taxes to build new schools or dilute the quality of education by creating larger classes with fewer teachers and buying inadequate portable classrooms.

Lexington 1’s board appears to think that taxing property owners rather than finding creative solutions is the way to go.

The $365 million bond is the tip of an iceberg that will be required in the future. As long as unfettered development without regard to its impact on schools continues, we are on notice that we are going to be taxed for the next 30 years for new schools while developers happily pocket their profits.

Voters must see it is time to find responsible stewards for the complex business the district has become. This means electing members who can find other ways to pay for growth. If candidates are not open to new solutions, we do not need them.

The tax and spend method of dealing with growth must end. It’s time for Lexington School District 1 to seriously advocate impact fees on all new residential construction, including apartments and mobile homes. We must all share the tax burden.