Gainesville imposes impact fees on residential construction including ADUs through transportation, parks, and stormwater impact-fee schedules. Florida Statute 163.31801 governs municipal impact fees, and Florida HB 337 (2021) capped annual increases. Alachua County School Impact Fees apply separately, collected by the County under interlocal agreement. Gainesville Regional Utilities (GRU) bills water and sewer system development charges.
Gainesville assesses impact fees on ADUs under Chapter 27 (Impact Fees) of the City Code and the Alachua County interlocal framework. ADU charges include: (1) Transportation impact fee based on land-use category and trip generation — ADUs are typically charged at a reduced trip-generation rate compared to a single-family detached home given their smaller size; (2) Parks and recreation impact fee where applicable; (3) Stormwater system development fee; (4) Gainesville Regional Utilities (GRU) water and sewer system development (capacity) charges, which can be reduced or waived where the ADU shares an existing service connection with the principal dwelling; (5) Alachua County School Impact Fee, collected by the County under interlocal agreement; (6) Fire-rescue impact fee where applicable. Florida Statute § 163.31801 sets the constitutional and procedural framework for impact fees, requiring rational nexus and rough proportionality. Florida HB 337 (2021) amended the statute to cap impact-fee increases at 50% over four years or 25% over two years, with phased adoption required for higher increases. Local governments must justify any increase with an infrastructure-deficiency study. Property reassessment is performed by the Alachua County Property Appraiser after construction, increasing annual ad valorem taxes; the Florida homestead exemption applies only to the principal dwelling.
Failure to pay impact fees and system development charges blocks issuance of building permits and certificates of occupancy. Unauthorized GRU water or sewer connections result in service disconnection and penalty billing. Unpermitted construction discovered later faces doubled fees and after-the-fact permit fees, plus Code Enforcement Board fines up to $250/$500 per day under Fla. Stat. § 162.09. Florida courts have held challenges to impact-fee calculations require timely administrative review.
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