City increases fees for inspection services

Rates for Cape Girardeau's inspection services increased July 1, the first such boost in 10 years. The increase approved by the city council was long overdue, according to city officials.

"We're still behind," said Tim Morgan, Cape Girardeau's director of inspection services. "We're trying to get building permits to actually cover the true cost incurred by performing our services."

The cost of providing inspection services for the past fiscal year was $444,000, while revenue from building permits totaled $55,000, Morgan said. The difference comes out of sales tax revenue.

Although the burden of new construction in the city limits is still on taxpayers, Morgan said he now expects another $20,000 to be paid directly by the consumers of the services.

The city has three inspectors with different areas of expertise, from plumbing to foundations. The inspectors visit construction sites six to 30 times before a project is complete, Morgan said. He added that they have to drive from project to project, which could mean being on the road six hours a day.

With rising gas prices factoring into the annual budget, Morgan said the city must deal with the growing cost of retaining skilled reviewers. Outside architects or engineers are hired for commercial plan reviews at a rate of $65 to $100 per hour, he said.

Taxpayers previously footed those costs, but for the first time a commercial plan review fee is in place. A professional plan review fee now costs the consumer $40 plus 35 cents per square foot, and remodels cost $20 plus 2 percent of the cost of construction. There is no separate plan review fee for residential projects.

Compared to cities of similar size, Cape Girardeau inspection fees are significantly lower, Morgan said. He couldn't say how much lower, explaining that each city figures its fees differently.

Morgan, the director of inspection services for less than a year, said the division was conservative with the building permit fees in the past.

"It should have done awhile back," City Councilman Charlie Herbst said of the increase.

But up until last year user fees couldn't be raised more than 5 percent in any year. Then a charter amendment was passed that allowed the city to raise user fees without voter approval. This includes all building permits with the exception of water, sewer and trash fees, which go through the city public works department.

"The problem was it wasn't worth it to raise fees a dollar or two," said Herbst. With the charter changes in place, some of the building permit fees have doubled during the annual budget public hearing this month.

Some construction contractors and architects say they will pass the cost of the higher fees along.

"We are getting hit with a lot of fuel surcharges and material price increases every year," said Greg James, vice president of Columbia Construction Corp. "I need that fee."

California Homes developer Mike Peters figures the new fees may cost consumers about $200 per house. Peters said that the bulk of the cost of building permits goes to water service installation and sewer tap fees anyway, and those price tags remain unchanged.

The increase does include signs and billboards, however. A permit for a sign now costs $20 instead of $10, and billboards were raised from $30 to $50.

But according to Walt Margrabe, owner of M&M Sign Installation & Service, the cost of sign and billboard permits run as high as $100 in larger metropolitan areas. "I think it's still within boundaries," he said.

tkrakowiak@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 137