Chesterfield reduces at-home business fees

By Staff Reports

Published: January 14, 2009

The Chesterfield Board of Supervisors has significantly lowered application fees for at-home businesses plus recreational facilities.

The planning department fees were increased in July as a way to collect a higher percentage of the department's processing costs.

But the change of $3,100 -- from $2,200 to $5,300 -- weighed heavily on some smaller would-be businesses and community associations.

On a motion by Bermuda District Supervisor Dorothy Jaeckle, the board tonight unanimously reduced the fees for at-home businesses and recreational facilities to $1,000 each, which is below last year's original figure.

Will Shewmake, a local attorney who represents local businesses, complimented it for taking swift action.

"I think the true test of someone is to say maybe we made a mistake and look at it, and you all immediately did that," he said. "It speaks very well of this board."

Jaeckle's motion also directed the county's planning commission to examine reducing the base fee for all other conditional use applications, to be balanced by increasing the per-acre fee for larger businesses.

-- Wesley P. Hester