So, if you’ve been driving past the southwest corner of Stockdale Highway and Buena Vista Road lately, you might’ve noticed some movement. This is the spot for a massive new Planet Fitness in Bakersfield—a 25,257-square-foot gym that's been at the center of a pretty heated boardroom brawl.
It isn't about the price of a Black Card or whether the "Lunk Alarm" is actually helpful. It’s about money—specifically, traffic impact fees.
Most people see a new building and think about the construction costs or the lease. But in California, there’s this whole world of "Impact Fees" that can make or break a project before the first treadmill even gets plugged in. For this specific Planet Fitness location, we’re talking about a bill for $284,793.
Honestly, that’s a lot of memberships.
The Beef Over the Bill
Here’s the deal. On August 27, 2025, the Bakersfield City Council basically shut down an appeal from Planet Fitness. The gym owners weren't happy about that nearly $300k charge. They felt the city was being inconsistent.
Basically, the city calculates these fees based on a formula:
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- Building Size: In this case, 25,257 square feet.
- Average Daily Trips (ADT): How many cars the city thinks are going to show up every day.
- The Fee Rate: A set dollar amount per trip (around $167 for this project).
The gym’s consultant, Russell Johnson from Common Sense Consulting, argued that the city was essentially misreading the "instruction manual" for traffic—something called the ITE (Institute of Transportation Engineers) guidance. He argued that gyms are being hit harder than other similar businesses.
The city didn’t budge. They argued that because this Planet Fitness is part of the Village at River Oaks Centre, it shares parking, utilities, and access with the rest of the shopping center. Therefore, it has to be assessed as part of that larger ecosystem.
Why Traffic Impact Fees Actually Matter
You might wonder why a gym has to pay for roads. It feels kinda disconnected, right?
In Bakersfield, these fees go into the Transportation Development Fund. The city uses this cash to widen lanes, install signals, and beef up intersections. If 500 people decide to go for a 6:00 PM workout, that’s 500 cars hitting the local asphalt. The city’s logic is: you brought the crowd, you help pay for the road.
But for a business owner, these fees are a moving target. Initially, the city staff actually wanted even more—somewhere around $340,000. They eventually settled on the lower $284k figure after some back-and-forth about the ADT numbers.
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The "Sheetz" Factor
There’s a bigger shadow hanging over this whole situation. You might’ve heard about a guy named George Sheetz. He took a case all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court over a $23,000 traffic fee in El Dorado County.
The Supreme Court ruled that even if a fee is "legislative" (meaning it’s on a standard schedule), it still has to be roughly proportional to the actual impact of the project.
This is huge. It means cities like Bakersfield can't just point to a chart and say "pay up." They have to prove that the $284,793 actually matches the wear and tear or the congestion that Planet Fitness members will cause.
The Reality of Doing Business in Bakersfield
If you're looking to open a shop or a gym in town, the "Phase III" and "Phase IV" Transportation Impact Fee schedules are your new best friends (or worst enemies).
For Retail Commercial space under 10,000 square feet, you might be looking at around $70 per ADT in "Non-Core" areas. But for a giant gym, those numbers scale up fast.
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- Core Area fees are generally lower to encourage development in the middle of the city.
- Non-Core Area fees (like the Stockdale/Buena Vista area) are much higher because the infrastructure isn't as robust yet.
What This Means for You
If you're a member, you probably won't see "Traffic Fee" on your monthly bank statement. But these costs affect where gyms open and how many amenities they can afford.
For the city, it’s a balancing act. If they charge too much, the vacant dirt stays vacant. If they charge too little, the traffic on Stockdale Highway becomes a permanent nightmare.
Actionable Steps for Local Developers
If you're dealing with traffic impact fees in Kern County, don't just accept the first invoice.
- Audit the ADT: The "Average Daily Trips" is often negotiable. Planet Fitness got theirs knocked down by about $55,000 just by arguing the math.
- Check the Nexus: Ask for the "Nexus Study." The city is legally required to show the link between your business and the specific road projects they're funding.
- Time it Right: Under new California laws (like SB 937), some developers can delay paying these fees until they actually get their Certificate of Occupancy, which helps with cash flow during construction.
The Bakersfield City Council has referred the whole TIF program to a committee for "further study." That's government-speak for "this is getting complicated, and we might need to change the rules."
For now, the Planet Fitness at River Oaks is moving forward, but it’s a prime example of how a simple gym can turn into a landmark legal and financial debate.
To stay ahead of these costs, ensure your project engineer conducts an independent traffic study before you submit your initial building permit applications to the City of Bakersfield. Comparing your specific projected data against the city’s standard fee schedule is the only way to effectively appeal a disproportionate fee.