Every building permit issued starting today in the future Interstate 69 corridor will be subject to a road impact fee.
The fee will be charged to all new businesses, commercial developments and homes that are within an impact zone in western Johnson County. The impact zone stretches from Bargersville’s southern point to County Line Road along State Road 37. The zone includes all of Bargersville and portions of White River Township, between State Road 37 and State Road 135, and includes county roads that will lead to I-69, such as Stones Crossing, Morgantown, Mullinix and Olive Branch roads.
The fee was established to collect money for road improvements that will be needed due to growth I-69 is expected to bring.
New single-family homeowners will be charged a standard fee of $2,571.64, including a $40.12 bridge and culvert impact fee, based on an average of trips per 24 hours. For now, it will be based on 10 trips per day, an industry standard that represents the average number of trips a household may take, said Luke Mastin, county highway director.
For commercial properties, the fee is based on the square footage of the building and the amount of traffic the business is expected to generate in a 24-hour period. The fee will be calculated using $268.17 per daily trip, and $4.25 bridge and culvert per daily trip, Mastin said.
The fee will be collected by county and town planning departments at the time a permit is issued, according to the interlocal agreement. If the fee is more than $5,000, the fee collecting agency can make arrangements to receive the fee in installments, he said.
Fees collected in Bargersville will be sent to the county to hold in an account in the county’s budget until enough is accumulated to complete a priority road project.
The fee is expected to raise $3.5 to $4 million in the first five years from residential development alone. The amount of revenue from the fee for commercial properties is not something that can be easily estimated because the amounts collected will be highly variable, but would likely be several million dollars during the same period, Mastin said.
The fee will only apply to new construction, not existing businesses and homes. However, existing neighbors, along with those who the fee does impact, will benefit from the road improvements the fees will pay for.
The fee will pay for several roundabouts within the impact zone. Roundabouts are planned at the intersections of County Road 144 and Morgantown Road, Olive Branch Road and Mullinix Road, and County Road 144 and Saddle Club Road.
