FORT MILL, S.C. — Faced with explosive growth and record-high impact fees set to take effect, Fort Mill leaders have pressed pause on new residential development applications.

On Monday, Town Council unanimously voted to halt all annexations and rezoning proposals with residential components until December 31.

“This moratorium will ensure that no new residential developments are proposed that would conflict with the goals and the future vision of the town,” said Assistant Town Manager Chris Pettit during a May 19 meeting introducing the ordinance.

The temporary moratorium excludes previously approved projects and does not stop construction on land already zoned for housing. Instead, it targets new proposals to rezone commercial or other land into residential use.

“The intent of this,” Pettit added, “is to give staff time to complete our new comprehensive planning process, our new downtown Master Plan process, [and] our Parks and Recreation Master Plan.”

Fort Mill is in the process of updating its long-range development roadmap, dubbed Fort Mill: Our Path Forward, which will guide growth through 2045. Public meetings on the new comprehensive plan are slated for November and December. The moratorium could be extended if planning efforts are still underway.

The freeze also coincides with major changes in development costs. Starting July 1, the town will impose steep new impact fees: $29,640 per unit for new single-family homes and $20,796 for each multi-family unit built within the Fort Mill School District.

Those fees are even higher than the national average in California, a state known for costly development regulations, according to data from the Pacific Legal Foundation.

Critics say the fees could hinder the construction of affordable housing.

Still, the town sees the fees as necessary to keep up with growth. Since 2018, impact fees have generated over $73 million for Fort Mill schools, helping the district expand without needing voter referendums.

“[The fees] have given the school district the ability to build without referendums,” said Assistant Superintendent Leanne Lordo during a March meeting with the York County Council, which approved the increase.

Fort Mill’s rapid growth — from a 2010 population under 12,000 to more than 36,000 today — has placed major pressure on infrastructure, schools, and town services. The temporary moratorium gives planners breathing room to update the town’s growth strategy in a measured, community-informed process.

At the same time, skyrocketing impact fees could reshape what kind of housing gets built and who can afford to live in Fort Mill. While the town’s leaders believe the fees are justified by growth-related costs, affordable housing advocates warn that low- to moderate-income residents may be priced out of new developments entirely.

The outcome of Fort Mill’s 2045 planning process will likely shape land use, zoning, and housing affordability for decades to come. The pause offers a critical window for residents to weigh in before those long-term decisions are finalized.

Originally reported by Scott Morgan in South Carolina Public Radio.