City Council Agenda Report Meeting Date: October 6, 2026 TO: City Council
FROM: Brendan Ottoboni, Director of Public Works – Engineering RE: Initial Public Hearing on the Modification to Chico Maintenance District (CMD A55) – Autumn Leaf Estates Subdivision
REPORT IN BRIEF:
At its August 18, 2026, meeting, the City Council adopted a Resolution of Intention to modify Chico Maintenance District (CMD) No. A55 – Autumn Leaf Estates Subdivision. The Developer of Autumn Leaf Estates requests a modification to CMD A55 to reflect the subdivision’s reduction from 68 to 67 lots and redistribute assessments accordingly. The modification does not change the district’s purpose or maintenance services.
RECOMMENDATION:
The Director of Public Works – Engineering recommends the following:
Consideration and approval of the City Engineer’s Report – Modified and to conduct an initial public hearing on the modification to Chico Maintenance District (CMD A55) – Autumn Leaf Estates Subdivision as required by Chapter 3.81 of the Chico Municipal Code.
FISCAL IMPACT: Budgeted: No Supplemental Required: No
The formation of this maintenance district will ensure appropriate levels of funding for the maintenance of special benefit public improvements specific to this subdivision.
DISCUSSION:
At its August 18, 2026, meeting, the City Council adopted a Resolution of Intention to modify Chico Maintenance District (CMD) No. A55 – Autumn Leaf Estates Subdivision.
CMD A55 was formed in 2025 to fund the maintenance and future replacement of improvements within the 68-lot Autumn Leaf Estates Subdivision. The Developer has since revised Phase 2 to eliminate one lot, reducing the district from 68 to 67 lots. The proposed modification only updates the assessment allocation to reflect the revised lot count. The district improvements and maintenance obligations remain unchanged.
If approved, the revised assessments would commence in FY 2027/28 and fund the ongoing maintenance and servicing of improvements that provide special benefit to properties within the district.
Pursuant to Proposition 218 and Chapter 3.81 of the Chico Municipal Code, ballots were mailed to all affected property owners following adoption of the Resolution of Intention.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW:
The project has been determined to be within the scope of the Mitigated Negative Declaration (MND) prepared for the Bell-Muir SPA Dissolution (GPA/RZ 24-02) and Autumn Leaf Estates Subdivision (ANX 24-01, SUB 24-01), pursuant to the Guidelines for the California Environmental Quality Act, 14 CCR Section 15162, no subsequent environmental review is necessary.
ATTACHMENTS:
Autumn Leaf Estates – City Engineer’s Report – Modified CITY ENGINEER’S REPORT - MODIFIED
(Chapter 3.81 CMC)
CITY OF CHICO
MAINTENANCE DISTRICT NO. A55
AUTUMN LEAF ESTATES SUBDIVISION – MODIFIED
Legal Requirements
In November 1996, the voters of the State of California passed Proposition 218, which significantly changed the Assessment Law. Among those changes was a requirement that a detailed Engineer’s Report be prepared and signed by a registered professional engineer in the State of California. This report is being prepared in response to that requirement.
Another requirement of Proposition 218 is that the Engineer’s Report must establish a substantive “special benefit” to property for the valid levy of an assessment. As part of the approval process for a subdivision, certain conditions must be met by the property owner. The special benefit specific to this subdivision includes the future replacement and annual operation and maintenance costs of stormwater facilities, fencing, monument signage, a mailbox pavilion structure, street trees, and landscaping specific to the lots within this subdivision. The improvements serve only the lots within the Autumn Leaf Estates Subdivision and each lot receives an equal benefit from it. No lot benefits more than another.
Maintenance Assessment District Improvements
As a condition of approval of a subdivision map, a mechanism for maintenance purposes must be established to cover long term upkeep of the improvements of special benefit to that parcel.
The maintenance assessment district boundary is described in Exhibit “A” and depicted in Exhibit “B”, attached. The maintenance assessment district improvements are also depicted in Exhibit “B”. The spreadsheet setting forth the calculations used to determine costs for the maintenance district is included as Exhibit “C”. The assessment shall be used for the purpose of funding the future replacement and annual operation and maintenance costs of stormwater facilities, fencing, monument signage, a mailbox pavilion structure, street trees, and landscaping.
Annual Assessment
The annual assessment for the maintenance assessment district is established based on the following direct costs:
Annualized replacement costs $ 8,599.98/year
Annual operating costs $ 31,495.90/year
Total Annual Cost for the District $ 40,095.88/year
Annual Per Lot Assessment: (67 lots) $ 598.45 per lot per year Attachment A
Apportionment
Apportionment will be equal among all residential lots. No lot benefits more than another.
Adjustment to Annual Assessments Based on Increases in Consumer Price Index Any increase in the amount of the total annual assessment as well as any increase in an annual assessment levied against a particular lot or parcel within the boundaries of this assessment district to account for inflation shall be calculated in the following manner. If, on the first day of the City fiscal year commencing on July 1st following the establishment of a maintenance assessment district in the manner provided by Chapter 3.81 of the Chico Municipal Code, and on the first day of each fiscal year thereafter that the assessment district remains in effect, there is an increase in the cost of operating and maintaining the public improvements to be funded with assessment district revenues, as measured by an increase in the consumer price index during such period of time, then the total annual assessment levied against all properties within the assessment district, as well as the proportional annual assessment levied against each lot or parcel within the boundaries of the assessment district shall also be increased in proportion to the increase in such costs. The determination of whether there has been an increase in such costs and the amount of the increase in such assessments which is proportional to the increase in such costs shall be made by the Director of Public Works - Engineering and shall be based exclusively on the percentage increase during such period of time in the consumer price index published by the Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics for all Urban Consumers - U.S. Cities Average (all items) or such other measure employed by the U.S. Department of Labor Statistics in lieu of such consumer price index which measures the cost of living in U.S. cities.
Credits Against Annual Assessments Based on Prior Year Maintenance Costs If the actual cost of operating and maintaining the public improvements funded by revenues from this assessment district during any year the assessment district remains in effect is less than the assessment levied for that year, the difference between the actual cost of operating and maintaining the public improvements and the assessment levied for that year shall be credited against the assessments levied during the next succeeding year in the manner prescribed as follows. If on the first day of the City fiscal year commencing on July 1st following the establishment of a maintenance assessment district in the manner provided by Chapter 3.81 of Chico Municipal Code, and on the first day of each fiscal year thereafter that the assessment district remains in effect, the total annual assessment levied during the preceding fiscal year exceeded the actual cost of operating and maintaining the public improvements to be funded with assessment district revenues during such preceding year, then the total annual assessment levied against the property within the assessment district during the ensuing fiscal year shall be reduced by a credit equal to the difference between the total annual assessment levied during the preceding fiscal year and the actual cost of operating and maintaining the public improvements to be funded with assessment district revenues during such preceding fiscal year.
In particular, the total annual assessment levied against all property within the maintenance assessment district shall be reduced during the ensuing fiscal year, and only during the ensuing fiscal year, by an amount equal to the difference between the total annual assessment levied during the preceding fiscal year and the total cost of operating and maintaining the public improvements to be funded with assessment district revenues during such preceding fiscal year, Attachment A
Attachment A
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