Megan Navarro
DRIPPING SPRINGS — During its Feb. 3 meeting, Dripping Springs City Council approved a request from Dripping Springs ISD to allow for the delayed payment of site development permit application fees for the second high school.
The discussion surrounding site development permit fees follows DSISD’s previous waiver requests to remove several heritage trees for the construction of Dripping Springs High School No. 2. The requests were approved 4-1, with council member Taline Manassian dissenting, at council’s Jan. 20 meeting, subject to the performance of mitigation measures, which could include a fee-in-lieu if mitigation options have been exhausted.
This also comes after a meeting between school district officials, Mayor Bill Foulds and city staff, said DSISD chief operations officer Scott Berry, where there was "good progress" made toward an interlocal agreement (ILA), which has been in the works for this project.
“During that discussion, a proposal for the issuance of a conditional site permit was presented. This permit would include stipulations concerning deferred payment of fees, wastewater and Darden Hill Road contingencies,” Berry said to council. “We respectfully request your approval tonight, so that we can secure the permit without delay. This step allows us to avoid costly construction setbacks while we continue to collaboratively work on the final ILA.”
Planning director Tory Carpenter said that the real push is related to the site development permit and this being the only “outstanding comment” keeping the city from being able to issue the full permit.
He added that it is up to council to decide if it is willing to defer payment of both the site development and tree fees-in-lieu until “either when the interlocal agreement is executed and those fees are established through that document itself or potentially a date certain, as well.”
On the legal side, city attorney Aniz Alani noted that if council wanted to specify a due date for the delayed payments, whether that is when the ILA is entered into or not, then that would need to be added as an amendment or specified in the item’s motion.
Manassian questioned Carpenter’s mention of the tree removal fees, as she believes that was addressed during the previous council meeting.
“I may be kind of combining the two requests, but the request tonight is really specifically for the site development fee because you are right, it was addressed for the tree removal waiver, as well, in the previous meeting,” Carpenter responded.
Alani reminded council that the resolution at the last meeting, with respect to the tree mitigation, was deferred until no later than May 1 and entering into an ILA, which could be mirrored for the site development permit fees.
“Those of us that have been working on holding these meetings, that gives us a certain date that we need to get this done and sit down together,” Foulds said. “So, I’d really like to keep that date. I don’t think it’s going to be a problem to make it, but if we know what we are working towards, I think we’ll all see that we are getting there quicker and if we have to, we’ll come back to council for an extension if we have to, but I don’t anticipate it.”
Council member Geoffrey Tahuahua asked for clarification on Alani’s preference on a motion: “If I understand, Aniz, what you are suggesting is if we were to make a motion related to this, your preference would be is we say something like a date, example May 1, which mirrors our previous motion, or date of the ILA … whichever comes earlier. Is that your intent?”
Alani responded that council can specify a due date, unless it’s important that at the same time the ILA is signed: “You have a check in hand for the permit application fees.”
He later explained that the tree mitigation deferral stop date is May 1, but it’s a question of the payment amount because it could be reduced through negotiation of the ILA.
“I would say the same thing should be the case with the site development permit application fees. There is the standard amount that’s due under the ordinance, under the fee schedule, but that amount may well be reduced by negotiation under the ILA,” Alani said.
Ultimately, council unanimously approved DSISD’s request for a delayed payment of site development permit application fees for the second high school to May 20, after deciding to have the deadline be after a meeting date that month.
Dripping Springs City Council meets next at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 17.
