Water & Sewer

Standards Committee

City Manager

 

CITY OF HOMER                                              City Manager

                                                             HOMER, ALASKA                                      City Manager

                                                                                                                                                           

                                                           RESOLUTION 01-07012 - 48  _______ 

 

A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF HOMER, ALASKA AMENDING THE ASSESSMENT METHODOLOGY FOR PENDING WATER AND/OR SEWER IMPROVEMENT/ASSESSMENT DISTRICTS TO 7550% PROPERTY OWNER SHARE AND 5025% CITY SHARE OF THE TOTAL PROJECT COSTS AND AMENDING THE ASSESSMENT METHODOLOGY FOR FURTURE WATER AND/OR SEWER IMPROVEMENT/ASSESMENT DISTRICTS TO 75% PROPERTY OWNER SHARE AND 25% CITY SHARE OF TOTAL PROJECT COSTS .AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO ENTER INTO AN AGREEMENT WITH THE KENAI PENINSULA BOROUGH TO PROVIDE FIRE AND EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES TO KACHEMAK EMERGENCY SERVICE AREA

 

WHEREAS, there are nine water and/or sewer improvement/assessment districts on the books awaiting constructionthe Kenai Peninsula Borough formed the Kachemak Emergency Service Area to provide fire and emergency medical services in the service area; and

 

WHEREAS, the improvements have been found to be necessary, the property owners have voted in favor of these improvementsthe City of Homer has contracted with the KPB on behalf of the KESA to provide fire and emergency medical services to the area included within the KES, which contract expired June 30, 2002; and

 

WHEREAS, the present methodology,  City share 75% property owner share 25%, was adopted during a time in which State funding was available to cities for funding at the 75% levelthe City of Homer, the Kenai Peninsula Borough administration and Kachemak Emergency Service Area board have negotiated a new six-month agreement for continued provision of fire and emergency medical services to KESA; and

 

WHEREAS, most of these projects were assessed with the basis of the City receiving funds from the State of Alaska, the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation and/or other State funding and there have been and are no State funds for these projectsat its meeting June 27th, 2002, the KESA board approved renewing the interim contract with the City of Homer for six-months at a cost of $95,800; and           

 

WHEREAS, funding at the 75% level is no longer available to the City from any sourcethe KPB Assembly, through KPB Resolution 2002-101, authorized the KPB Mayor to execute the negotiated contract, which he has done; and

 

WHEREAS, using the existing assessment methodology, City share 75% property owner share 25%, the total cost of the City’s share is $5,420,337the City desires to extend the interim agreement for six; and

 

WHEREAS, the City presently has on hand only $1,743,000 available for the City’s share of the total costs; and  

 

WHEREAS, although the voters of the City of Homer during the 1999 General Municipal Election approved the use of unexpended sales tax revenue for water and/or sewer improvements, this only increases the projection of available funding for the City’s share at the rate of approximately $300,000 per year; and

 

WHEREAS, some of these projects have been awaiting funding for nearly seven years; and

 

WHEREAS, the Water and Sewer Standards Committee has been tasked, in part, with bringing these projects to fruition using available those funds; and

 

WHEREAS, many hours have been spent ascertaining the most efficient method of utilizing the sales tax funds and the funds presently available to complete construction of bring to project completion these improvement/assessment districts and to establish a policy for assured future funding of water and sewer improvement districts; and

 

WHEREAS, the Water and Sewer Standards Committee has made the recommendations outlined in this resolution; and

 

WHEREAS, it is the conclusion of the Council that assessment methodology must be changed if water and sewer projects are to actually be constructed in a timely, orderly and equitable fashion; and

 

WHEREAS, the Council has determined that a two step process is necessary in the implementation of  an assessment methodology change fairly address the required change to this City policy; and

 

WHEREAS, the first step would be to establish an assessment methodology for the aforementioned nine improvement districts of 50% share for the property owner and 50% for the City; and

 

WHEREAS, the change in the methodology must be approved by petition by the members of each improvement district for construction to proceed in each improvement district; and

 

WHEREAS, it may be necessary for the boundaries of the nine districts to be modified by the property owners to accomplish their goals with the assistance of the City; and

 

WHEREAS, a reasonable time to accomplish the reconsideration by the property owners is ninety days; and

 

WHEREAS, any of the nine aforementioned improvement districts that would fail to be endorsed by a majority of the property owners within the 90 days, or with such extension(s) granted by Council, would be dissolved and no longer be in existence; and

 

WHEREAS, if the 50%-50% change is approved by property owners in each district, Harrington Heights, Mariner Village, Thompson Drive, Saltwater Drive, Forest Glen and East Road could be constructed in the first year and Hillside Acres[sewer], Hillside Acres [water] and Lakeshore Drive could be completed with the next four years; and

 

WHEREAS, the second step of the methodology change is to implement an assessment policy for all future water and sewer improvement districts by which the City would pay 25% and the property owner would pay 75% of the total costs; and

 

WHEREAS, a methodology by which the shares are 25% City and 75% property owner,  could permit the construction of $1.2 million in projects per year, indefinitely, if the Council decides to allocate all water/sewer sales tax revenues to LIDs; and

 

 

 

WHEREAS, these improvements have been found to be necessary, the property owners have voted in favor of these improvements; and

 

WHEREAS, current assessments on most of these projects is at the 25%(property owner)/75% (city share) split; and

 

WHEREAS, most of these projects were assessed with the basis of the City receiving funds from the State of Alaska, the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation and/or other State funding and there have been and are no State funds for these projects; and   

 

WHEREAS, if the property owners go along with the 75% (property owner)/25%(city) split the City has located funding for a ten to twenty year loan for the property owner share at a 5%, m/l, interest rate; and

 

WHEREAS, the plan is to construct these projects during the 2001 construction season and to do that the City has determined that an increase in assessments is necessary; and

 

WHEREAS, with a 75% property owner share/25% City share all of the presently constituted  improvement/assessment districts can be done with the funds designated to water and/or sewer improvements; and

 


Page Two

Resolution 01-07

City of Homer  

 

WHEREAS, pursuant to Homer City Code 17.04.030, Improvement districts--Formation and assessment, the Council may create local improvement districts and assess the real property benefittingbenefiting from such capital improvements for all or a portion of the cost of acquiring, installing and constructing such improvements; and

 

WHEREAS, pursuant to Homer City Code 17.04.070(b), Assessments and assessment roll,  the Council shall be the sole authority for determining the method of assessments to the affected district.

 

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF HOMER, ALASKA:

 

1.The Council concludes that the present assessment methodology of the City paying for 75% and the property owner paying for 25% of the total costs of the improvement districts is impractical and unworkable considering the funding source available; and

 

1.The Council concludes that a two phase implementation of new assessment methodology is necessary because it must fairly deal with both presently approved improvement districts and future improvement districts; and

 

1.The Council hereby establishes the assessment methodology for the presently approved improvement districts as City share 50% and property owner share 50%; and

 

1.The property owners in each presently approved LID shall have 90 days from the date of this Resolutions enactment to approve this change in policy; and

 

1.The property owners, with the assistance of the City, shall have the opportunity to adjust the boundaries of their LID’s during the 90 day period; and

 

1.Following the expiration of the 90 day period, plus any Council approved extension(s,) it is the intention of the Council to adopt a resolution to forward to the construction phase any and all of the nine improvement districts approved by the property owners; and

1. 

1.The Council hereby establishes the assessment methodology for all future water and sewer improvement districts at 25% City share and 75% property owner share of total costs.

1. 

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Homer, Alaska that the Assessment Methodology for water and/or sewer improvement/assessment districts is hereby amended to a 75% property owner share and 25% City share of the total project costs; and

 

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that all the property owners of the current nine improvement/assessment districts shall be notified of this action by the Council and the process followed as set forth in the Homer City Code for a public hearing date set, objection period and notifications thereof.

            SECTION 1.   The City Manager is authorized to execute the accompanying Interim Agreement for Provision of Fire and Emergency Medical attached hereto and incorporated by reference, in which the City of Homer will provide fire and emergency medical services for a six-month period beginning July 1st, 2002 for the sum of $95,800.

 

            SECTION 2.   This Resolution shall take effect immediately upon its enactment.

 

PASSED AND ADOPTED by the Homer City Council this 26th day______ of April February, 200112th day of August, 2002..

 

Page Two

Resolution 02-48

City of  Homer

 

CITY OF HOMER

 

 

 

 

 

 

____________________________

ATTEST:                                                                     JACK CUSHING, MAYOR

 

 

 

 

_________________________________________

MARY L. CALHOUN, CMC, CITY CLERK

 

 

 

 

Fiscal Note: Contained in backup memorandum from the City Manager. Fiscal note: notification and advertising costs.