Cashmere Planning Commission weighs options to raise funding through future development

CASHMERE– As the City’s new Comprehensive Plan approaches completion, the Cashmere City Planning Commission met and discussed the future of Cashmere’s development and growth. Amongst a certainty for pursuing the formation of a Cashmere Transportation Benefit District, the Planning Commission also workshopped future ideas to collect taxes through development, namely, development impact fees. 

Development impact fees operate through both commercial and residential growth, taxing new developers in the area in order to help pay for related increases in infrastructure strain. 

As Cashmere City Director of Operations Steve Croci explains, development impact fees could help lower the overall load on long-time locals while encouraging new developers to invest in the local community.

“People who have lived here 100 years shouldn’t have to pay for some guy who’s wanting to fill up and build a subdivision,” he mentioned, “and that through affected infrastructure like the city transportation system, they should pay their fair share for what they do on their property.” 

However, despite the possible benefits of implementing development impact fees, Croci and the City Planning Commission expressed concern about various shortcomings of the hypothetical implementation. 

Most importantly, development impact fees have been shown to mostly impact larger cities with more substantial development and transportation deficiencies. In contrast, Cashmere’s streets and transportation infrastructure provide more than adequate levels of service to the majority of local travelers all year round, making the introduction of development impact fees unnecessary and redundant. 

Because of this, the City Planning Commission, though curious about development impact fees, showed disinterest in further pursuing their implementation until first finalizing the upcoming City Comprehensive Plan and subsequently surveying more critical levels of service within the City’s transportation infrastructure. 

Director of Operations Croci explained that as more development projects continue to move into the Cashmere area, placing a larger load on overall infrastructure, the implementation of development impact fees may become more viable.

“Our next real big project would be Evergreen Drive, it looks like we’re talking up to 100 new homes going in right across from the cemetery on Kimber and Evergreen Drive,” he commented. “It’s not good for people who walk on that street because there’s no sidewalk, there’s no shoulder, so that would be something that we’d want to focus on.” 

With the inclusion of a development impact fee, those building around these deficient areas will be responsible for helping the city make improvements based on the load they add to the system.

Though the city did not decide upon development impact fees, they offer a glimpse into the future of Cashmere’s development. As the City continues to grow in popularity and population, the City Planning Commission continues to consider how to best expand Cashmere in the healthiest ways possible, allowing the Heart of Washington to continue spreading its contagious sense of neighborly love across the region.

Will Nilles: (509) 731-3211 or will@ward.media