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Techniques For Mitigating Urban Sprawl |
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| Facility Adequacy, Timing, and Planning - Facility Planning |
| Capital Improvement Programs (CIP) |
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Capital improvement programs (CIPs) establish a schedule and funding basis for extending and improving facility systems (e.g., streets, water and sewer lines, septic systems, schools, libraries, parks, and other common facilities). If well linked, coordinated, and constantly updated, these ways of managing infrastructure can be effective. Yet many communities find that they must rely on other means to ensure that infrastructure development corresponds to other aspects of community development, especially in meeting funding requirements. Many communities use some or all of the techniques — functional plans; adequate public facility (APF) requirements (See APF standards/requirements.); exactions, impact fees, and special districts for these purposes; and so on. Source/Reference: Porter, 1997, pp. 25-26 and pp. 47-49.
In the 1974, President’s Council on Environmental Quality Annual Report, cited state and local government infrastructure sizing, expansion and extension policies as some of the most important determinants of metropolitan form (CEQ, 1974). These so called “growth shapers” can have a profound influence on the development intensity and density that is possible on adjoining and nearby land.
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In Texas, “impact fees” as defined by Chapter 395 of the Local Government Code (see discussion below under Development Exactions) are only allowed pursuant to a capital improvement plan. Local Gov’t Code ?395.013. The capital improvement plan must be prepared by “qualified professionals” as specified in the statute, and must include the following items:
(1) a description of the existing capital improvements within the service area and the costs to upgrade, update, improve, expand, or replace the improvements to meet existing needs and usage and stricter safety, efficiency, environmental, or regulatory standards;
(2) an analysis of the total capacity, the level of current usage, and commitments for usage of capacity of the existing capital improvements;
(3) a description of all or the parts of the capital improvements or facility expansions and their costs necessitated by and attributable to new development in the service area based on the approved land use assumptions;
(4) a definitive table establishing the specific level or quantity of use, consumption, generation, or discharge of a service unit for each category of capital improvements or facility expansions and an equivalency or conversion table establishing the ratio of a service unit to various types of land uses, including residential, commercial, and industrial;
(5) the total number of projected service units necessitated by and attributable to new development within the service area based on the approved land use assumptions and calculated in accordance with generally accepted engineering or planning criteria;
(6) the projected demand for capital improvements or facility expansions required by new service units projected over a reasonable period of time, not to exceed 10 years; and
(7) a plan for awarding:
(A) a credit for the portion of ad valorem tax and utility service revenues generated by new service units during the program period that is used for the payment of improvements, including the payment of debt, that are included in the capital improvements plan; or
(B) in the alternative, a credit equal to 50 percent of the total projected cost of implementing the capital improvements plan. Local Gov’t Code ?395.013. Texas Legislature Online, http://tlo2.tlc.state.tx.us/statutes/docs/LG/content/htm/lg.012.00.000395.00.htm#395.014.00 (visited 7/24/07)
Dallas City Hall – “The general-purpose program provides improvements to and/or construction of the City's street system; parks and recreational facilities; police and fire protection facilities; flood protection and storm drainage systems; various city facilities; cultural facilities; and improvements to stimulate economic growth.”
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Envision Central Texas  6800 Burleson Road, Building 310, Suite 165 Austin, TX 78744 Mailing Address: P.O. Box 17848 Austin, TX 78760-7848 |
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