Delray Beach may raise fees for building permits

City commissioners will consider Tuesday evening whether Delray Beach should charge higher fees for building permits.

Some building permit fees would double and others would more than treble.

The city’s planning and zoning board voted against the increased fees for building permits, contending they were too steep to impose them all simultaneously.

But city staff have recommended that commissioners approve the proposed higher fees.

Fees for building permits in Delray Beach have been unchanged since 2011, when the city raised them by 5 percent.

The Delray Beach city administration concluded that the city’s building permit fees are lower than in most other South Florida cities, based on a survey of Boca Raton, Fort Lauderdale, Jupiter, Lake Worth, Palm Beach Gardens, West Palm Beach and Wellington.

City officials say the proposed higher fees for building permits would generate $900,000 of city revenue in fiscal year 2015-2016, compared with $415,000 if the fee structure remains unchanged.

City commissioners will consider the proposal to raise building fees at their 6 p.m. meeting on Tuesday, and if they grant preliminary approval, they will consider granting final approval on October 6. [Sun-Sentinel] — Mike Seemuth