St. Cloud Council Faces Third Hearing On Building Permit Fee Increases Monday

(KNSI) – The St. Cloud City Council takes up a sweeping building permit fee package for the third time Monday night, and city staff recommends the council trim the proposal, delay it, and then wait two more weeks to actually vote on it.

Staff is asking members to push the effective date of any fee increases to January 1st, 2027, and to strip out the proposed changes to the city’s building valuation data entirely.

That second piece is significant. The valuation table assigns a dollar value to a project based on square footage, and the fee schedule is applied to that value to calculate what the city collects. Moving off the 2015 table St. Cloud currently uses would have raised permit costs on its own, separate from any rate change. Staff now say the valuation question can be revisited later.

Making those changes carries a procedural cost. Because amending the ordinances is a change of substance, the city charter requires another published public hearing before final adoption. Staff recommends the council take that up August 31st, which would be the fourth public hearing on a proposal first reviewed in April.

Even without the valuation table, the rate changes are broad. A basic electrical inspection minimum goes from $35 to $55. Plumbing fixtures move from $10.50 to $15 each with a $50 minimum. A wall sign under 100 square feet goes from $33 to $50. Residing permits jump from $60 to $100, and a combined reroofing and residing permit from $75 to $200. Commercial plumbing and mechanical permits shift to a flat 2% of project valuation.

Building permit fees in St. Cloud have not been adjusted since 2007.

One number in the packet has moved. Staff now estimate the amended proposal would generate roughly $800,000 in additional annual revenue. In May, the figure presented publicly was closer to $500,000. The packet does not explain the difference. Staff say the money would cut the proposed property tax levy increase from 3.75% to about 3.18%.

About 78% of the increase, or $626,000, would come from commercial permits, with $174,000 from residential. Roughly $375,000 would be reinvested in Building Safety staffing, contracted plan review and software; the rest goes to the General Fund.

The city’s core argument for the increase is that the current fees cover less than half the cost of the service. Analysis puts recovery at 37% in 2024 and 44% in 2025, falling to 33% in the 2026 and 2027 budgets. With the proposed fees, staff projects 49% in 2027, meaning property taxpayers would still carry about 51%.

Staff cite a state rule requiring municipal fees be fair, reasonable and proportionate to the actual cost of service. Developers have been citing the same rule against the city.

Notes from a June 23rd roundtable convened by Greater St. Cloud and the Benton Economic Partnership flag a city statement that 25% of permit revenue would support the Development Fund, and argue that is “arguably not allowed by state law.” The packet responds with a detailed breakdown of that fund, showing more than 82% of its $774,300 in 2027 spending goes to personnel.

A second roundtable July 17th brought in Mayor Jake Anderson and city staff. Summaries describe developers pressing on unmet promises around permitting timelines, technology and customer service, and pushing the city to weigh the full cost of development rather than permit fees alone. The mayor also outlined an upcoming pilot program allowing single-family SAC, WAC and TAC deferrals through December 2027.

The St. Cloud Area Association of Realtors is asking the city to shrink the increases, phase them in, and exempt affordable and workforce housing. The group estimates the changes could add $1,000 to $4,000 to a typical new home.

Adoption requires four votes. The council can also approve the ordinances as originally written, amend them differently, or postpone or table again. The meeting gets underway at 6:00 p.m. at city hall.

___