Builders sue city; Thomas money at core
| Tuesday, Aug 04 2009 07:26 PM
Last Updated Tuesday, Aug 04 2009 07:28 PM
Local homebuilders are suing the city of Bakersfield over Bill Thomas.
Well, not quite.
But a lawsuit against a recent increase in traffic impact fees spells out what's lurking at the core of the dispute: the city's need for local matching funds for $630 million of federal transportation money Bakersfield's retired congressman secured before leaving office.
The "primary purpose" of the higher fees, the Home Builders Association of Kern County's complaint alleges, was to raise revenues "to obtain local matching funds for...the Thomas Roads Improvement Program."
Revised fees approved by the city council last month will add thousands of dollars in up-front costs to each new home as builders struggle to stay afloat. The county, which passed the same fees in May, is also named in the suit.
Tuesday's complaint focuses on alleged violations of the state Mitigation Fee Act, which governs how cities and counties collect, spend and account for impact fees.
Technicalities underlie the suit, but the builders' demands are more straightforward: a judge should declare the fees invalid, halt collections and order the city to refund some $50 million it didn't properly account for.
City officials couldn't immediately be reached for comment shortly before 5 p.m. Tuesday.
