Residential, industrial and commercial developers in Goleta will face increased impact fees, which are one-time charges used to help fund public infrastructure needed to serve new development in the city. 

In the past, the fees have helped fund local projects such as Jonny D. Wallis Park, the San Jose Creek Multipurpose Path Project and Project Connect, according to Nina Buelna, Goleta’s Public Works director. 

On Tuesday, the Goleta City Council voted 4-0 to approve the maximum proposed increases to the fees for parks and recreation, transportation and library facilities.

The proposed maximum fees are what the city can legally impose, but cities can adopt lower fees, which it did for some categories on Tuesday.

For the storm drain, bicycle and pedestrian, and public administration facilities fees, the City Council voted to lower the maximums by 20% after hearing concerns from local housing and business groups.

“We need to be doing everything we can to make sure that the development benefits all of the people in our community,” Councilman James Kyriaco said, “(and) is done in a way that is responsible, done in a way that doesn’t harm the quality of life of our residents.”

Tuesday’s discussion excluded the fire facilities fee, which will be brought to the City Council at another time, according to the city staff report.

“I think what makes the reduction of those three categories more palatable is that we are still talking about a large, significant increase to what we have now,” Councilwoman Luz Reyes-Martín said.

The proposed maximum fee amounts would increase fees by thousands of dollars across many categories.

She pointed out that the public administration fee would have an increase of more than 100% across the development types in the category.

“So I think even with that 20% reduction, we are still significantly increasing to match what our facilities need and what we need as a city,” Reyes-Martín said.

Goleta conducted a 2026 development impact study, its first in six years, that identified the maximum justified amounts the city could impose on developments.

Inflation tied to the COVID-19 pandemic for consumer and capital goods has driven the increases, according to Robert Spencer with Urban Economics. 

Other drivers include land and construction costs, according to city consultants.

Under California law, Goleta can impose these development impact fees if there is a proven relationship among new development, the need for public infrastructure, the use of fee revenue and the amount charged, according to the city staff report.

A hypothetical 1,000-square-foot commercial project would face more than $130,000 in fees with the proposed amounts, said Amy Steinfeld, a lawyer with Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck LLP, who criticized the fees during public comment Tuesday. 

However, not all projects have to pay the full fee. “Beneficial projects,” which include childcare facilities and mobile home parks, among others, can get a fee reduction.

For example, the Storke Medical Center proposed near Ice in Paradise is considered a beneficial project because it includes a childcare center in its plans. Thus, it is getting tens of thousands of development impact fees waived, according to Kyriaco. 

The City Council requested that staff bring back the list of beneficial project categories for review at a later date.

Local housing and business groups voiced concerns about the fee increases during public comment.

“The proposed fees are dramatically out of step with every neighboring jurisdiction,” Steinfeld said. “Goleta already has the highest development impact fees in the region.”

Similarly, Rachel Murphy with the Santa Barbara South Coast Chamber of Commerce said adopting the proposed maximums could deter much-needed housing developments from coming to the city. 

“Goleta is already one of the most expensive jurisdictions in the county to build housing projects, and the proposed fees would worsen that disparity,” she said. 

Kyriaco took issue with Goleta being compared with other jurisdictions and said critics needed to consider the city’s revenue-neutrality agreement with Santa Barbara County.

The agreement means 50% of the city’s property tax revenue and 30% of its sales tax stay with the county, City Manager Robert Nisbet explained. 

“There’s a lot we can do with that money, but we don’t have the money because it goes elsewhere,” Kyriaco said. 

Reyes-Martín agreed with Kyriaco and said the agreement means Goleta starts with less money to ensure that city facilities such as the library and parks are well maintained. 

Councilman Stuart Kasdin supported the study’s maximum fees and said he was against a “blanket reduction” across the fee categories.

“(To) simply lower costs for the developers and then hope that they do what?” he asked.

Kyriaco added that developers can sometimes be “finicky and very fickle” and could lose interest if the cost per unit is not what they were anticipating.

He was the one to propose lowering some of the maximum fees by 20% in three categories, to show local partners that the city has heard their concerns. 

The final calculations for those fees will come back to the City Council at a later date. The adjustments will be effective 60 days after adoption, according to the city staff report. 

Mayor Paula Perotte was absent Tuesday because she was sick. Council members Reyes-Martín, Jennifer Smith, Kasdin and Kyriaco voted in support of the fees.