Cape Charles permit fee review reflects months of discussion, but few committee recommendations made final proposal

CAPE CHARLES, Va. — A six-month effort by members of the Cape Charles Historic District Civic League’s Permitting Committee to revise Cape Charles’ building, planning and historic district permit fees resulted in only limited changes to the fee schedule ultimately presented to the Town Council during its June 18 budget meeting.

Documents reviewed by the Cape Charles Mirror show the discussion began in January, when committee members prepared a comparative analysis of Historic District Review Board (HDRB) fees charged by several Virginia localities, including Alexandria, Richmond, Leesburg, Herndon, Lexington, Fredericksburg, Front Royal and Virginia Beach. The comparison was intended to provide Town staff with examples of how other historic communities structure Certificate of Appropriateness (CoA) application fees and administrative reviews.

Editor’s Note: The Mirror would like to thank former and current HDCL presidents Claudette LaJoie and Susan Burger for their assistance with the data, historical timeline, and for providing much-needed context.

According to committee members, the January submission was intended to begin a collaborative review of Cape Charles’ fee schedule. They say they did not receive a formal response following its submission.

Budget review incorporates some recommendations

The issue resurfaced during preparation of the Town’s FY2027 budget.

In a March 26 memorandum prepared by then Planning Director and Zoning Administrator Katie Nunez, Town staff acknowledged receiving comments from the Historic District Civic League regarding the permit fee structure. The memo notes that the Civic League had been “instrumental” in development of the Historic District Overlay revisions and Appendix G, which established new categories for Routine Maintenance, Minor Work and Major Work.

Staff agreed with several of the committee’s concepts, including:

• eliminating fees for routine maintenance;
• restructuring modification fees for approved Certificates of Appropriateness; and
• creating additional categories for residential major work.

The memorandum also indicated staff intended to recommend broader revisions to the Town’s overall fee schedule.

Committee submits detailed revisions

After reviewing the Town’s proposed fee schedule, the Permitting Committee prepared its own marked-up version in May.

Rather than simply reducing fees, the committee sought to reorganize the Historic District Review Board section so it aligned with the terminology adopted in Appendix G. Members argued that property owners should be able to determine whether a project qualified as Routine Maintenance, Minor Work or Major Work using the same definitions found in the Town’s historic design guidelines.

Among the committee’s recommendations were:

• retaining the proposed no-fee policy for Routine Maintenance;
• maintaining administrative review without fees for certain in-kind Minor Work;
• reducing the proposed fee for new residential historic district construction from $1,000 to $500;
• reducing the proposed fee for new commercial or mixed-use construction from $2,000 to $1,000;
• lowering several modification fees for previously approved Certificates of Appropriateness;
• reducing fees for certain residential and commercial major work applications; and
• restructuring after-the-fact permit penalties to distinguish between residential and commercial projects as well as minor and major violations.

Committee members also inserted numerous edits intended to clarify definitions, eliminate ambiguities and better coordinate the fee schedule with the newly adopted Historic District Review Board procedures.

Meeting with Town staff

Committee representatives met with Town Manager Rick Keuroglian and the Town’s Planning & Zoning staff on May 20 to review the proposed revisions.

According to committee members, no specific recommendations were accepted during that meeting. Instead, Town management indicated the proposals would be reviewed internally before a final version was prepared for Council consideration.

June proposal differs from committee recommendations

The fee schedule included in the June 18 Town Council meeting packet incorporated some concepts that both staff and the committee supported, but left many of the committee’s recommended fee reductions unchanged.

Among the changes retained in the Town’s proposal were:

• no application fee for Routine Maintenance;
• revised categories for Minor Work and Major Work;
• lower fees for certain modification requests; and
• a reorganized Historic District Review Board fee schedule reflecting the Appendix G terminology.

However, several of the committee’s principal recommendations were not adopted.

The Town’s proposal continued to recommend increasing Historic District Review Board application fees for new construction to $1,000 for residential projects and $2,000 for commercial or mixed-use projects, double the amounts recommended by the committee. The proposal also retained higher fees for demolition of contributing historic structures and several major work applications than those suggested by committee members.

Broader fee review

While much of the discussion centered on historic district applications, the FY2027 proposal also included revisions affecting building permits, zoning clearances, environmental permits, subdivision applications, wetlands permits and planning applications.

The proposed fee schedule also introduced a new zoning determination letter fee, modified temporary certificate of occupancy charges, adjusted subdivision review fees and revised several Chesapeake Bay Preservation Area permit charges.

Continuing discussion

The review illustrates the challenge of balancing several competing objectives: recovering the Town’s administrative costs, encouraging preservation of historic structures, and maintaining a permitting process that property owners find predictable and affordable.

For committee members, the primary objective was not simply reducing fees, but ensuring the schedule reflects the terminology and review procedures adopted through the Town’s recent Historic District ordinance revisions. They argue that a fee schedule organized around Appendix G’s categories would make the permitting process easier to understand while encouraging compliance.

The June 18 Council presentation marked the latest step in that process, but the documents show that many of the committee’s proposed revisions did not make it into the version ultimately presented by Town staff, leaving the broader discussion over permit fees and historic district administration likely to continue.

About the Author

Wayne Creed

Administrator

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