10/06/2008 Council Packet (2) - Laserfiche WebLink

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What is "the question behind the question ?" What exactly is at issue? The question citizens must ask themselves is: Who is best equipped to make decisions regarding Lino Lakes common - good public improvements involving special assessments? Elected city leaders using all the resources at their disposal? Or all citizens throughout the city regardless of the project's relevance, urgency, or complexity? What is the key difference between Lino Lakes charter chapter 8 and MN Statutes, Chapter 429? Under our charter, citizens have the right to approve or disapprove of every local -level public improvement involving a special assessment. Under 429, citizens will not be able to vote on every public improvement involving a special assessment. Why is street repair so intertwined in the question of Chapter 8 of the Charter vs. Chapter 429 of Minnesota's statutes? Since so many streets now require recon- struction, and since reconstruction requires a special assessment due its cost, the question of how to pay for that cost is critical. Under chapter 8, the city cannot assess the cost to taxpayers without a citywide vote. Under 429, the city will be allowed to. Under the current charter, is there anything stopping the city of Lino Lakes from replacing or repairing paved streets? No —if the city chooses to levy an annual tax increase on all citizens that could raise taxes by close to 20 %. The streets have deteriorated to the point where the costs to fix them has exceeded the general fund resources. The streets will eventually need to be repaired, but city council does not want to resort to this financing option to fix our streets. Today, can the city pave my street and add sewer, water, or storm sewer without a vote by the entire city? No— virtually no matter where you live in the city, or what street needs to be recon- structed, under the city charter, if a special assessment is required, the entire city must vote to fix any street regardless of complex- ity, urgency, or proximity to voter. By amending the charter, will I have fewer rights, Tess say in my neighborhood, lower equity in my home, and a higher tax burden? In Lino Lakes, citizens will always have the most important right of all: the right to vote elected officials out of office if the officials are not listening to —and acting on —their concerns. What exactly are special assessments? In the majority of cities in Minnesota, when city leaders decide to make public improvements that cost more than is available in a general fund, the cost of the improvement is added to property owners' tax statement. This is a "special assess- ment' Homeowners directly benefiting by the assessment are automatically assessed a portion and the rest of the taxpayers throughout the city fund the remainder. In Lino Lakes, the entire city must vote on every public improvement involving a special assessment. In 12 years, the city charter has required five referenda and only one has passed. Couldn't the city have been making improvements all along over the years through a general fund and kept the streets from getting this bad? With the weather extremes we face in Minnesota, most streets have a useful life. When this life is over, patching and resurfacing the street becomes more costly in the long run than reconstructing the street. Reconstructing a street is expensive and requires the collective support of the entire community to bring it up to the safety and functional standards of today. If you have more questions about the referendum to amend the city charter, please contact either the Mayor or one of your city council members listed below. Mayor John Bergeson 651- 982 -2492 Council Members Kathi Gallup Jeff O'Donnell Dan Stoltz Jeff Reinert 651- 982 -2490 651- 982 -2494 651- 982 -2493 651 - 982 -2491 Fast Facts Moody's investment grading rating service gives Lino Lakes a high grade of Aa3 which insures the city receives low interest rates on general obliga- tion bonds. As city streets continue to deteriorate without a maintenance plan begun, this rating is in jeopardy. Did You Know? The city has a 10 -year, 521 million pavement management plan ready to implement that addresses street maintenance citywide. It also has a financing plan to pay for the maintenance at the lowest cost overall. Under this plan, the most that taxes would rise on a 5250,000 home is 511 per month. 7