Frequently Asked Questions
regarding the Parkland Dedication Ordinance (PDO)
and
Parkland Impact Ordinance (PIO)
What
is the PDO (Parkland Dedication Ordinance)?
Requirement of developers
of new residential subdivisions to provide land, pay a parkland fee in lieu of
land dedication, or both, for the acquisition, development or renovation of
neighborhood and community serving parks to serve the new residents of the
subdivision(s). PDO was enacted by the
City in 1988 and is consistent with the State’s Quimby
Act.
What
is the PIO (Parkland Impact Ordinance)?
Enacted in 1992, the PIO
applies to new non-subdivided residential projects such as apartment buildings.
What
is the Park Trust Fund?
Fees paid in lieu of land
dedication are deposited into the Park Trust Fund. Money in the Park Trust Fund must be expended
solely for the acquisition, development or renovation of neighborhood and
community serving parks or the neighborhood and community serving elements of
regional parks.
What
is nexus?
Nexus is established for
projects within a ¾ mile radius from the development that generated the fees
for neighborhood serving facilities, and two miles for community serving
facilities or the neighborhood and community serving elements of regional
parks.
How
are the fees set?
Park in-lieu fees are
currently set at 70% of the 2001 raw land values (undeveloped land) within the
Multiple Listing Service (MLS) zones set by the San Jose Board of
Realtors. This is a problem because the amount of funds received from in-lieu fees are insufficient
to acquire and develop the land into neighborhood parks. It’s also a problem because land values have
changed at different rates and in different directions within the various MLS
zones of the City, so using the 2001 basis year causes disparity. In some cases, the developer will dedicate
land and develop it into a neighborhood park known as turnkey development; the
value of the land and its improvements must be
equivalent to the parkland obligation.
The City of San Jose’s
General Plan service level objective is 3.5 acres of neighborhood/community
serving parkland per 1000 residents, of which recreational school grounds can
count up to 2 acres per 1000. The
current status is 1.2 acres of neighborhood/community serving parkland per 1000
residents; if recreational school grounds are included, the figure increases to
3.1 acres per 1000 residents.
Since the inception of
the PDO/PIO, 131 acres have been dedicated to the City and approximately 42 of
those acres have been developed. During
the same time period, the City has acquired an additional 22 acres of parkland
from non-PDO/PIO sources and has developed 9 of those acres.
Residential development
projects that are low and very low income are exempt from the PDO/PIO
requirements starting January 1, 2006.
No parkland obligation fees are required from these types of residential
development.
Residential development
projects that have fewer than 51 units are subject to parkland obligation fees
only and are not required to dedicate parkland.
City staff has completed
an administrative review of the Park Trust Fund since its inception in 1988 to
June 30, 2005. The purpose of the review
was to examine allocations, policies and practices. While the reconciliation did not identify any
major discrepancies in the administration of the Fund, it did reveal a need to
allocate additional resources to improve recordkeeping, interdepartmental
coordination, and the timely disbursement of funds. Staff’s recommendations and key findings
will be presented to the City Council at their meeting on June 13, 2006.
PDO/PIO is a means to
provide funding for desperately needed parkland and amenities for our
community. Park fees are collected every
time new housing projects are built. The
City of San Jose requires developers to dedicate land or pay fees (known as
in-lieu fees) to acquire or improve parkland.
Unfortunately it has been many years since the fees have been adjusted
to reflect current land values. That
means every time a new development is built, the funding for our parks is
shorted. This diminishes the City’s
ability to keep up with park service level objectives.
Contact your Council
member and express your support for aligning the parkland fees to reflect 100%
of current land values and not the outdated values from 2001. We also need to utilize the most recent
census data, instead of the 1990 census data, as required by state law (Quimby Act). This will be of enormous help to the Parks,
Recreation & Neighborhood Services Department as they set about to acquire
and develop new parks and recreational amenities.