Decreased Impact Fees

The Mount Vernon City Council’s recent decision to lower transportation impact fees will make it cheaper to open a business or build a home in the city. The decision reduces fees by about 25 percent for residential development and by about 50 percent for commercial projects, said Principal Planner Rebecca Lowell. Developers pay transportation impact fees to the city to mitigate the impact new developments have on city roads. The city also collects development fees for fire, parks and utility hookups, she said.

With regards to building additional housing, Kayla Schott-Bresler, public health analyst for Skagit County, said anything helps when trying to address the city’s shortage of units. “Anything you can do to lower costs makes development more feasible,” she said.