Subject: IRE STATION BALLOT COMPLETION FOR MAINTENANCE DISTRICT 19
COUNCIL DISTRICT: 4
Direct the City Clerk to
complete and submit the assessment district ballots in favor of the assessment
to be levied on City owned property by proposed Maintenance District 19 (River
Oaks Area Landscaping) in the amount of
$261.44 for fiscal year 2001-02 and increased annually by the percent
change in the CPI.
The City Council
has recently taken actions to establish Maintenance District 19 which will
maintain enhanced street island landscaping on River Oaks Parkway from First
Street to Cisco Road, Zanker Road and Innovation Drive. The public hearing and
special election on the proposed assessments for this district have been set
for June 26, 2001.
Two City owned
parcels located at the corner of Zanker Road and Innovation Drive, are within
the proposed boundaries of the district. City of San Jose Fire Station 29
occupies these parcels. Proposition 218 requires that parcels owned by
governmental agencies be assessed for special benefits they receive from
district services or improvements. In conformance with the requirements of
Proposition 218, the Engineer’s Report has determined that this City owned
property receives some special benefit and must therefore be assessed.
The benefit to
each parcel, as determined in the Engineer’s Report for this district, is
allocated according to land use and the special benefit to the various land use
types was based in part on the aesthetic benefit to workers, and residents in
the area. The fire station use is
similar to other land use within the district, having workers and being a
habitable structure, and receives similar benefits. The proposed assessments must be approved by a majority of
ballots returned from the property owners subject to the assessment.
As a property owner within the proposed
district, the City is entitled to cast a ballot in favor of or against the
assessment. The property on which the fire station is located was assigned two
Assessor’s Parcel Numbers by the County Assessor’s Office because of a tax rate
boundary line that runs through the property.
Therefore, staff created two separate ballots for the property, one for
each parcel number. Ballots for the
city owned properties were delivered to the City Clerk in preparation for this
action.
City Council is
asked, acting as the property owner, to vote in favor of the assessment on the
two parcels, totaling $261.44 for fiscal year 2001-02 with the Consumer Price
Index as an annual adjuster. Then
direct the City Clerk to mark the ballots accordingly and include them with the
ballots to be tabulated on June 26, 2001.
The total annual
assessment is based on cost of maintaining the enhanced street island
landscaping on River Oaks Parkway from First Street to Cisco Road, Zanker Road
and Innovation Drive. The individual
assessment for each property is determined by dividing the total annual
assessment by a ratio of the acreage of that property to all properties being
assessed for the maintenance of those islands.
The cost for the
maintenance of the enhanced landscaping is passed to the property owners
because it exceeds the City standard.
The street islands in River Oaks Parkway and Innovation Drive were
installed and landscaped for decorative purposes and were not required by the
City. The street islands in Zanker Road
were landscaped at a level higher than City standard.
If the district is
approved the City will in addition to the annual assessment payment make an
annual general benefit contribution to cover the cost of standard city
maintenance for the Zanker Road street islands.
The Departments of Transportation and Public Works have conducted public information meetings for the district with interested property owners. A separate mailed notice for the informational meetings was also sent to property owners.
This memorandum and related documents were prepared in cooperation with the Department of Transportation, the Offices of the City Attorney and the City Clerk.
If the district is
approved by a majority of the property owners returning ballots the City owned
parcels will be subject to an annual assessment as shown below:
Maintenance District 19
City owned parcels fiscal year 2001-02
Special Benefit Assessment - $261.44
The amount
assessed to the City owned parcels, as with all assessments imposed by the
district, will be adjusted annually by the Consumer Price Index for the San
Francisco-Oakland-San Jose area as calculated by the U.S. Department of
Labor. This assessment is in addition
to the general benefit contribution that will also be required of the City if
the district gains majority approval.
RAJEEV BATRA
Acting Director, Public Works Department