Fremont City Council Meeting: 05/09/23 07:00 PM
3300 Capitol Avenue Div/Dept: Community Services
Fremont, CA 94538 Category: Fees & Rates
SCHEDULED
Sponsors:
COUNCIL STAFF REPORT (ID # 4876) DOC ID: 4876 C
Updated: 5/4/2023 3:13 PM by Alberto Quintanilla C Page 1
PUBLIC HEARING FOR PROPOSED ANNUAL ASSESSMENT FISCAL YEAR 2023/24 OF FREMONT LANDSCAPING ASSESSMENT DISTRICT NO. 88 - Public Hearing (Published Notice) to Adopt a Resolution Confirming Diagrams and Assessments for Fiscal Year 2023/24 for Fremont Landscaping Assessment District 88 Zones Annual Assessment Process.
Contact Persons:
Name: Andrew Freeman Suzanne Wolf
Title: Business Manager Community Services Director
Div/Dept: Community Services Community Services
Phone: 510-494-4757 510-494-4329
E-Mail: [email protected] [email protected]
Executive Summary: Staff recommends the Council conduct a public hearing to levy the annual assessment for Landscaping Assessment District 88 and adopt a resolution confirming diagrams and assessment for this district for Fiscal Year 2023/24. Each year, the City levies annual assessments within Landscaping Assessment District 88 for public landscape maintenance. On March 14, 2023 City Council began the District 88 assessment process, when it adopted resolutions ordering and approving an Engineer’s Report detailing calculations of the annual assessments, declaring intent to levy and collect the assessments, and setting a public hearing of May 9, 2023. The City Council approval was published in the Tri-City Voice on Tuesday, March 21, 2023.
This action is exempt from review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Sections 15061(b)(3) and 15301.
BACKGROUND: The City Council formed the Fremont Landscaping Assessment District 88 (“the District”) in December 1988. This type of District allows for the creation of landscape maintenance zones as a condition of approval of subdivision tract maps to ensure ongoing maintenance of public landscaping improvements that are in or adjacent to the subdivisions, and that complement their appearance. Each year the City determines the amount of revenue needed to maintain the public landscaping for each zone and levies an assessment on each lot in the zone sufficient to pay this amount. Formation of new zones and annexing them into the District is required, as a condition of tract map approval, if a developer does not form a homeowner’s association to maintain public landscaping. There are no new zones to be formed or annexed into the District this year.
Levies for assessments are governed by the Landscaping and Lighting Act of 1972 (“LLA”).
This Act allows the City to levy and collect assessments for the purpose of funding the installation, maintenance, replacement and servicing of public landscaping and lighting improvements. The amount of the assessment levied on each parcel of land is based on the special benefit the parcel receives from the improvements. The County collects the assessment with property taxes and transfers the funds to the City. In addition to the requirements of the LLA, the City must comply with the requirements of Proposition 218, which was adopted by California voters in November of 1996. Generally, Proposition 218 and its implementing legislation allow property owners to defeat, by majority protest, assessment increases beyond previously established maximum assessments for any zone Council Staff Report (ID # 4876) Meeting of May 9, 2023 Updated: 5/4/2023 3:13 PM by Alberto Quintanilla C Page 2 within the District. A majority protest may also defeat the formation of any new district or zone.
On June 24, 1997, the property owners in the District’s then existing Zones (1 through 37) were asked to approve maximum assessments in their respective zones. All zones approved the maximum assessment, except for zones 18 and 22 for which property owners established majority protests under Proposition 218. Those zones are no longer assessed for the District and the City does not maintain any improvements in those zones. In subsequent years, property owners approved the formation of zones 38 through 47 and the levy of maximum assessments as well. These newer zones were annexed into the District at the time of development. Thus, the District now includes Zones 1 through 17, 19 through 21, and 23 through 47.
The maximum assessments for each zone and the amount of the proposed levy for the coming fiscal year for the annual assessment process are shown in the Engineer’s Report on pages 5 through 9. All proposed assessments are at or below the maximum assessment approved by the property owners on or after June 24, 1997.
There are presently 47 zones in the District, 41 of which are City managed. Four zones are maintained by homeowner associations, but the assessment can be imposed again in the future if homeowners fail to provide adequate maintenance. As previously stated, two zones are no longer assessed due to majority protests in 1997.
DISCUSSION/ANALYSIS:
Hearing for Levy of Annual Assessments for Existing Zones in District 88: In this hearing the City Council must consider public comments regarding the proposed levy of the on-going assessments. Written comments or oral testimony must be accepted up to the conclusion of the hearing. Because assessments for the annual assessment process are not proposed to be increased beyond the maximums established on or after June 24, 1997, a majority protest cannot defeat the proposed assessments. Notice of this public hearing was posted in the Tri-City Voice on Tuesday, March 21, 2023.
Engineer’s Report: The Engineer’s Report lists the estimated costs (including a reasonable contingency) for the new fiscal year. Also included is a carryover cost (operating reserve) which is sufficient to pay the first six months of maintenance costs because assessment revenues are not disbursed to the City until after the County property tax bills are due. The assessment also includes the City’s and the County Tax Collector’s administrative costs for imposing and collecting the assessment. The total of these cost items is the gross assessment shown on the budget pages in the Engineer’s Report.
In addition to the annual gross assessment, the Engineer’s Report includes accounting of reserves. The reserve fund is intended to provide for unanticipated maintenance and replacement costs, as well as planned capital improvement costs. The reserve is calculated by combining the zone balance at the beginning of Fiscal Year 2022/23 and the anticipated revenue from the 2022/23 assessments minus the projected Fiscal Year 2023/24 expenditures.
Council Staff Report (ID # 4876) Meeting of May 9, 2023 Updated: 5/4/2023 3:13 PM by Alberto Quintanilla C Page 3 For the annual assessment process, forty-one (41) zones will be assessed in Fiscal Year 2023/24. Forty-One zones will have the same assessment as Fiscal Year 2022/23. There are no reduced assessments from the prior year. Pages 11 through 15 of the Engineer’s Report list the previous years’ assessments for each Zone. Pages 5 through 9 list the Fiscal Y ear 2023/24 proposed assessments and budgets for each zone.
Fiscal Year 2023/24 Actual Zone(s): Total Maintenance Zones:
1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 13, 14, 15,
17, 19, 20, 21, 23, 24, 25, 26
Maintenance Zones with assessments
equal to prior Fiscal Year (22/23): 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46,
47 Maintenance Zones with increasing
assessments from prior year (22/23): 0 0
Maintenance Zones with reduced
assessments from prior year (22/23) 0 0
Maintenance Zones Protested in 1997 18, 22 2
Maintenance Zones Operated by
Homeowners Associations 2, 6, 12, 16 4
Total District 88 Zones: 47
41 With the approval of the fiscal year 2023/24 annual assessment 68% of the District 88 zones managed by the City are at maximum assessment or within $2 of the maximum assessment.
FISCAL IMPACT: All City costs associated with maintaining and administering the District are covered by the annual assessments. There is no General Fund impact.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW: The levy of assessments will ensure the continued maintenance of existing improvements and will not result in any significant changes to the environment. The annual assessment for the District is exempt from and not subject to review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) because, without limitation, it is not a “project” as defined in CEQA Guidelines Section 15378(b)(2) and/or 15378(b)(5) and as it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the activity may have a significant effect on the environment per CEQA Guidelines Section 15061(b)(3), and CEQA Guidelines Section 15301 as the assessments will be used to maintain existing facilities, each as a separate and independent basis for CEQA compliance.
ATTACHMENTS: None.
Council Staff Report (ID # 4876) Meeting of May 9, 2023 Updated: 5/4/2023 3:13 PM by Alberto Quintanilla C Page 4
ATTACHMENTS:
• Draft Resolution- District 88 Confirming Diagrams and Assessments 2023-24 • Fremont Final Eng Rpt FY 23-24
RECOMMENDATIONS:
1. Open public hearing
2. Consider all oral statements and written comments
3. Close public hearings.
4. Levy the proposed assessment by adopting a resolution confirming Diagrams and Assessments for Fiscal Year 2023/24 for Fremont Landscaping Assessment District 88.
5. Find the project exempt under CEQA Guidelines Sections 15061(b)(3) and 15301.