Developers building new subdivisions, shopping centers, or apartment complexes in Mesa could soon face a dramatically higher bill when their projects trigger the need for a traffic signal—raising upfront development costs and potentially affecting project budgets.
The in-lieu fee for a standard four-leg arterial intersection would jump from $350,000 to $900,000—a 157% increase. The fee for a “T” intersection where no driveway access is planned at the top would rise from $320,000 to $600,000. If the City Council approves the changes on June 1, the new rates take effect July 1.
According to the Transportation Department’s fee proposal, the old fees—last set in 2019—cover only about 40 cents of every dollar the city actually spends on signals. Traffic signals recently built by Mesa have cost between $682,656 and $1,057,048 for a four-leg intersection. The proposed $900,000 fee, the report states, reflects “the market cost the City is currently paying”—not a markup…