Lake Worth Beach reviews mobility-fee report; staff to negotiate ordinance with county

City staff summarized a completed mobility-fee technical report and told the Lake Worth Beach Commission that, if adopted, the city would collect development-related mobility fees and place proceeds in a separate trust account to fund prioritized mobility projects across the city.

“As we see it, the city of Lake Worth Beach would collect the money,” the agency official said, explaining that the ordinance still must be negotiated with the county and that the fee schedule would be tied to building permits and the type of development. The staff member said fees would apply to new residential and commercial development and to larger additions that increase traffic generation.

Staff said an initial distribution between the city and the county will be part of the negotiation and that the commission would decide which priority projects to fund. The staff presentation noted the technical report had been in draft since November and consultants from WDI will present further detail at the Tuesday meeting.

Commissioners sought clarification on collection and allocation. Vice Mayor Mimi May asked who would collect the fee and where money would be allocated; staff confirmed the city would collect if negotiations succeed and funds would support projects listed in the technical report, which can be amended over time.

The presentation left key implementation questions open: the final ordinance language, the city–county split of revenue, and which projects will be prioritized first. Staff estimated that, if collection begins and priorities are approved, there could be enough money to start a couple of projects within about a year.