The resolution adopted April 17 addresses this by aligning fees with actual impacts of tiny homes on city infrastructure and services while also maintaining the city’s current legal fee structure (Nexus). Photo courtesy of Freepik

WEST SACRAMENTO, CA (MPG) – A year after passing an ordinance classifying tiny homes on wheels as a permitted housing option in the city, the City Council adopted a resolution at its April 17 meeting setting up a “proportional impact fee reduction program” for those units used as a primary dwelling.

Under the city’s current fee structure, these homes are assessed impact fees in 10 categories at the same level as single-family homes, which generally run from 1,500 to 2,500 square feet in size. Since the 2025 ordinance addressed tiny homes on wheels of 399 square feet or less, the current fee creates challenges for individuals looking at this housing option.

“This fee structure does not reflect the reduced scale and demand associated with tiny homes on wheels, creating a disproportionate financial burden for those who want to utilize tiny homes as a housing option to live in the city,” West Sacramento Community Development Department senior planner Daniel Berumen said.

The resolution adopted April 17 addresses this by aligning fees with actual impacts of tiny homes on city infrastructure and services while also maintaining the city’s current legal fee structure (Nexus). It also creates an interim structure the city can utilize for allowing tiny homes until the Nexus is updated per state law, which according to city staff would be around 2030.

The new structure applies the smallest residential tier charges — less than 1,100 square feet — to tiny homes in categories such as fire and police facilities development fees. Park impact fees are assessed at the multifamily level based on land-use category and equivalent dwelling unit (EDU) comparisons, with traffic impact fees assessed the standard, flat fee at the lowest residential tier, 700 square feet or less.

“Since tiny homes on wheels fall within this category, they already receive the lowest applicable fees,” Berumen said.

Sewer connection fees will also be assessed the multifamily EDU rate, which is 75 percent of the single-family rate. The only rate not changed was the water connection fee which like the sewer rate is based on the smallest meter size needed by the city to calculate daily EDU consumption used in the city’s fee schedule formula.

Impact fee assessments — except for traffic — depend upon which of two zones the residence is built. According to city schedules, tiny homes on wheels located south of Washington Lake and the Sacramento River ship canal would be assessed a water connection fee of $12,241 and a sewer connection fee of $7,959.

Tiny homes north of this in the “Urban Infill Fee Reduction Area” would be assessed water and sewer connection fees of $4,879 and $3,183 respectively. Traffic impact fees vary depending upon which of nine different zones the tiny home is sited and range from $4,614 to $1,846 in the southern portion of the city to $1,370 to $797 north of the lake and canal.

By comparison, traffic impact fees for a single-family residence range from $23,534 to $9,413 south of the lake and canal to $$6,821 to $3,964 to the north. Overall impact fees for single family residences can range from $85,802 to $$71,681 in the south to $48,101 to $45,224 in the north.

For tiny homes on wheels, those fees range from $53,188 to $50,420 in the south to just over $28,000 in the north.

The resolution adopted by council also includes a fee payment plan option for tiny homes on wheels. Applicants using the plan would pay 25% of the assessed impact fees up front with the remaining balance paid in quarterly installments until they are paid in full or final permitting occurs, whichever comes first.

Tiny homes on wheels advocate Robin Davis praised the city’s impact approach during public comments. Davis, who has addressed council at meetings since October 2020 as a resident who lives in her “160-square-foot, semi-off-grid tiny home on wheels on my undeveloped residential property here in West Sacramento,” said the fee schedule is a good step towards making these homes available as an affordable housing option, especially the payment plan.

“It prioritizes meeting basic human needs before asking residents to fully absorb the cost of long-term infrastructure,” she said.

Davis added the city still has a long way to go in making these homes affordable for people who want to use them as a primary dwelling.

“The proposed fee structure, while definitely improved, still includes some inconsistencies that directly impact affordability,” she said.

Davis said a plumbing analysis she paid for from a licensed engineer using current California codes showed the typical tiny home requires only 25 percent of the water supply and produces about 31 percent of the wastewater as that of a single-family residence. Davis proposed changing the water and sewer fees to a more proportional usage rate, and asked council to postpone the resolution until more studies can be done.

“Because every dollar matters at this level of housing,” she said. “Taking a little bit more time now allows us the opportunity to get this right.”

Councilwoman Norma Alcala and Mayor Martha Guerrero agreed, noting the study was submitted to council as part of public comment. West Sacramento planning manager Tristan Osborne said the resolution’s focus and staff discussion was on impact fees, not usage charges; noting impact fees pay for city infrastructure needs from development.

“The impact fees are correlated but detached from the monthly usage fees that you might see in a city utility bill,” he added.

West Sacramento principal engineer Mark Collier said a large percentage of residential water usage on a single-family lot comes from landscape irrigation. While tiny homes on wheels footprints are smaller, the reduction in size could lead to a larger area of the lot potentially used for landscaping and therefore “an even higher use” of water.

Collier said staff hadn’t analyzed the study in detail and would continue to monitor how water usage occurs with tiny homes on wheels. The proper place for adjustments, he added, was in the Nexus study update process.

“We’re trying to come up with our best shot at something that’s equitable and we’ve tried to keep it in those terms,” Collier said.

After additional discussion on the study and methodology, council passed the resolution 5-0.