Menlo Park: New road fee for construction projects Menlo Park: New road fee for construction projects (October 13, 2004)

New construction projects can spiff up a city, but the roads can take a beating in the process. So the City Council just may approve a new street impact fee in Menlo Park.

Heavy construction vehicles tend to cause more damage to roads than regular cars; a recent study showed that on average Menlo Park streets with "significant building permit activity" deteriorated 13.1 percent more than others, city engineering director Ruben Nino wrote in a staff report.

The new fee would be 0.66 percent of the total construction project value and is expected to generate about $393,000 annually. The City Council is set to vote October 12 on whether to approve it.

At meetings earlier this year, council members expressed interest in the fee and said more needs to be spent on roads, sidewalks and other parts of the city's infrastructure.

Atherton, Woodside and Portola Valley already have road impact fees for construction.

The October 12 meeting begins at 7 p.m. in the council chambers at 801 Laurel St. To read the report, go to www.menlopark.org, click on "City Council," and go to the October 12 agenda.

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