Sahuarita area land owner laments high fees for poor roads

TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — One landowner in Wrangler Ranches says he was shocked when he got the bill for a permit to build a house on his property from Pima County.

It was over $10,000, with over $8,000 of it going toward a Roadway Development Impact Fee for building new roads and expanding existing ones.

But Doug Boyd's house is on a dirt road, and the road he uses to leave his neighborhood has been the subject of local anguish as it's covered in bumps and potholes.

Even with the road's seemingly lacking state, Pima County's transportation department has previously said they think the road is in "Good" condition.

Adam Klepp

An agenda item addressing the road's condition was added for a Pima County Supervisors meeting late last year, but the road still looks to be in rough shape, and isn't on the county's list for repair in 2024.

Boyd told me he chose to live in Wrangler Ranches for the open space, and peace and quiet.

"We understand our dirt roads are maybe going to be maintained less than the public roads," Boyd said. "But I don't believe we should have to pay the same impact fee as someone who is living in a residential area."

Pima County said the road fee is the same for any land owner in Pima County looking to build a single family detached house.

In a statement they said “the impact fee goes toward building new roads and adding capacity to existing roads that must be widened to accommodate new growth.”

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But added, those fees do not go toward road maintenance, and also are spent in the areas where they are collected.

Boyd said this statement is basically what he has heard from the county as well, but he still plans to pay the fee.

“They have you over a barrel. Either you break the law or you don’t, and I’m not one to break the law, I'm going to pay the fee," Boyd said. "But I’m also going to speak out and say this isn’t correct, and this is wrong.”