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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPublic Hearing and Decision on Protests to the Rec_22Commission Memo re: Resolution 4263 A final Resolution Recreation/Extension of the Downtown Bozeman Business Improvement District Page 1 of 3 Commission Memorandum REPORT TO: Honorable Mayor and City Commission FROM: Greg Sullivan, City Attorney Stacy Ulmen, City Clerk Chris Kukulski, City Manager SUBJECT: Public Hearing and Decision on Protests to the Recreation/Extension of the Downtown Business Improvement District and Adoption of Resolution No. 4263, a Resolution to Re-create/Extend the Bozeman Downtown Business Improvement District. MEETING DATE: June 21, 2010 AGENDA ITEM TYPE: Action RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends the Commission conduct a public hearing regarding the recreation/extension of the Downtown Business Improvement District (DBID) to: (i) determine whether protests received to the recreation/extension of the DBID are sufficient; (ii) hear and decide upon all protests; (iii) and adopt Resolution No. 4263. BACKGROUND: The Commission must consider three actions related to this agenda item and the recreation/extension of the Downtown Business Improvement District. First, the Commission must determine whether the protests received are sufficient (i.e. whether the protests have met the statutory thresholds described below). Second, the Commission must hear and decide upon all protests received to the creation of the DBID. Third, the Commission must adopt a final Resolution creating the District. If you adopt the Resolution, the next agenda item requires you to also adopt an ordinance for the DBID. The creation of an improvement district requires the Commission to first adopt a Resolution of Intent (completed on May 26, 2010) followed by a 15 day statutory protest period after which the Commission must conduct a public hearing on the protests and if the protest are not sufficient the Commission must determine whether to adopt a final Resolution. These later two steps are included in this action item. The final step requires the Commission to adopt an ordinance codifying the procedures for the DBID. This ordinance is before you in your next action item. A. Public Hearing on Sufficiency of Protests and Decision on Protests. After adoption of Resolution of Intent 4256, the owners of property to be assessed within the DBID were given the opportunity to submit protests to the creation of the DBID as required by Sect. 7-12-1114, MCA. The Commission is required by law to hold a public hearing on the 247 Commission Memo re: Resolution 4263 A final Resolution Recreation/Extension of the Downtown Bozeman Business Improvement District Page 2 of 3 protests to determine whether those protests are sufficient and also to “hear and pass upon all protests.” As of the close of the protest period two property owners submitted protests. These protests are attached to Resolution 4263. Sect. 7-12-1114(3)(a)-(c), MCA, describes thresholds that if mete by the protests would bar Commission action: (3) No further action shall be taken upon the proposed district or proposed expansion of an existing district for 1 year if a written protest against passage of the proposed ordinance is filed by: (a) owners of property within the proposed district or area of a proposed expansion having a taxable valuation, when aggregated, representing not less than 50% of the total taxable valuation of property within the district or within the area of a proposed expansion; (b) not less than 50% of the owners of property within the district or area of a proposed expansion; or (c) owners of property within the proposed district or area of a proposed expansion having projected assessments, when aggregated, representing not less than 50% of the total projected assessments for property within the district or within the area of a proposed expansion. The City Attorney reviewed the protests received and certifies before the Commission the protests do not meet the thresholds for barring Commission action listed in Sect. 7-12-1114(3), MCA, as: (i) the total taxable value of the property whose owner protested amounts to $8,032 (0.3% of the total taxable value of the proposed District); (ii) only two owners out of the approximately 140 – 145 owners in the district submitted protests (approximately 1.4% of the total owners); and (iii) the projects assessments of those two property owners who protested amounts to $702.63 per year out of a total annual assessment of $114,000.35 (0.6% of the total projected assessment); Nevertheless, pursuant to Section 7-12-1115, MCA, the Commission must still determine whether the protests are “sufficient” and also either “overrule” the protest or “hear and den[y]” them. B. Resolution 4263: final Resolution to Recreate/Extend the DBID Attached to this staff report is Resolution 4263, the final Resolution recreating the DBID. Rather than explain in detail here the provisions of said resolution we attached the original staff report for the Resolution of Intent. This staff report details the purposes behind the DBID and the programs of the District. We do want to call your attention to an important component of the recreation: the Resolution of Intent and the final Resolution both limit the total assessments of the DBID. Please see Section 3 of the final Resolution. C. Board Member Terms With the Resolution of Intent we notified you of an unresolved issue regarding whether board members whose terms continue beyond the expiration date of the current district must be reappointed if the Commission recreates/extends the district. The Commission must reappoint the board members to the terms that, by ordinance, will continue on the same schedule as the current terms. The Commission may appoint the current members to continue to these terms. 248 Commission Memo re: Resolution 4263 A final Resolution Recreation/Extension of the Downtown Bozeman Business Improvement District Page 3 of 3 UNRESOLVED ISSUES: There are no other identified unresolved issues. ALTERNATIVES: None identified. FISCAL EFFECTS: The fiscal effects to the city of Bozeman government are nominal. The effects include staff time in the Finance Department administering the finances of the district and conducting tasks associated with including the assessments on the yearly city assessments mailed out to each property owner. Each summer, prior to final approval of the overall budget, the DBID is required to present a work plan and district budget to the City Commission for approval. The Commission will, based on the approved work plan and budget, levy an assessment against each property within the District to raise the approved budgeted amount. The total assessments for the District for 2009 totaled $114,000 and the Resolution calls for a limit on the total assessments for the District, if re-created, for 2010 to not exceed $114,000. This amount represents the entire budget for the District. The Resolution also caps the total assessments during the life of the District. Attachments: · Resolution No. 4263, Resolution to Re-create/Extend the DBID. o Exhibit A. Map of properties subject to the jurisdiction of the Bozeman Downtown B.I.D. o Exhibit B. List of all properties subject to the jurisdiction of the Bozeman Downtown B.I.D. o Exhibit C. Protests received to the recreation of the DBID. · Staff Report (without attachments) from the Resolution of Intent (Resolution 4256). Report compiled on: June 15th and 16th, 2010 249 Resolution 4263 Re-create/extend the Downtown Business Improvement District Pursuant to Title 7, Chpt. 12, Part 11, Montana Code Annotated Page 1 of 4 COMMISSION RESOLUTION NO. 4263 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF BOZEMAN, MONTANA DECLARING ITS INTENTION TO RE-CREATE/EXTEND THE BOZEMAN DOWNTOWN BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT WHEREAS, Ordinance No. 1517 created the Bozeman Downtown Business Improvement District (the “District”) and became effective on May 15, 2000; WHEREAS, the current District is set to expire on the 10-year anniversary of its creation pursuant to Section 7-12-1141, Montana Code Annotated; WHEREAS, the current District Board of Trustees has asked landowners as set forth in Exhibit B in which the boundaries match the boundaries of the current District, to consider re- creating the District anew; WHEREAS, several landowners, as defined by §7-12-1103, MCA in coordination with the Downtown Bozeman Partnership have expressed the need for re-creating/extending the Bozeman Downtown Business Improvement District, pursuant to the provisions of §7-12-1101, MCA, et seq., MCA, to aid promote the health, safety, prosperity, security, and general welfare of the inhabitants of the district and the people of Montana as well and to be of special benefit of the property within the boundaries of the district; and WHEREAS, Section 7-12-1111, MCA, allows the City Commission to create such a district upon receipt of a petition signed by the owners of more than 60% of the area of the property proposed in the petition to be included in such a district; and WHEREAS, numerous owners of real property submitted petitions requesting the City Commission create a Business Improvement District for the City of Bozeman (hereinafter referred to as the “Bozeman Downtown B.I.D.”) and were received by the City Clerk on Wednesday, May 5th and are located on file with the City Clerk; and 250 Resolution 4263 Re-create/extend the Downtown Business Improvement District Pursuant to Title 7, Chpt. 12, Part 11, Montana Code Annotated Page 2 of 4 WHEREAS, the Bozeman City Attorney reviewed the petitions received and certified before the Commission the petitions delivered to the City Clerk contained the signatures of owners of more than 60% of the area of the property to be included within the proposed district; and, WHEREAS, the City Commission, in order to promote the health, safety, prosperity, security and general welfare of the potential members of the district and the citizens of Bozeman, desires to levy assessments against certain tracts of land within the District as set forth in Exhibit “B” that comprise the Bozeman Downtown B.I.D.; and WHEREAS, pursuant to Section 7-12-1111 (2) and (3), MCA, the boundaries of the proposed Bozeman Downtown B.I.D. comply with all applicable zoning regulations and no property subject to the Bozeman Downtown B.I.D. is zoned primarily as a residential area; and WHEREAS, Section 7-12-1111(1), MCA, requires that upon receipt of said petitions, the City Commission shall establish a district pursuant to the provisions of Title 7, Chpt 12, Part 11, MCA, which requires adoption of a Resolution of Intent; WHEREAS, the City Commission adopted said Resolution 4256 (Resolution of Intent) on May 24, 2010; and WHEREAS, following adoption of Resolution 4256 the Bozeman City Clerk, as required by Sect. 7-12-1112, MCA, published a Notice of Adoption of the Resolution of Intent and mailed said notice to every owner of real property with the proposed district providing an opportunity for the owners to protest creation of the proposed Bozeman Downtown B.I.D.; and WHEREAS, during the statutory protest period which expired on June 14, 2010, two protests to recreation of the District were received and are attached to this Resolution as Exhibit C; and WHEREAS, Sect. 7-12-1114, MCA, requires the Commission to hold a public hearing on the protests received and to hear and pass on all protests; and WHEREAS, the City Attorney has reviewed the protests received and certifies before the Commission the protests do not meet the thresholds for barring Commission action listed in Sect. 7-12-1114(3), MCA, as: (i) the total taxable value of the property whose owner protested amounts to $8,032 (0.3% of the total taxable value of the proposed District); (ii) only two owners out of the approximately 140 – 145 owners in the district submitted protests (approximately 1.4% of the total owners); and (iii) the projects assessments of those two property owners who protested amounts to $702.63 per year out of a total annual assessment of $114,000.35 (0.6% of the total projected assessment); and 251 Resolution 4263 Re-create/extend the Downtown Business Improvement District Pursuant to Title 7, Chpt. 12, Part 11, Montana Code Annotated Page 3 of 4 WHEREAS, Sect. 7-12-1115, MCA, states that if the Commission determines the protests received are insufficient or overrules them, or when a protest against the District has been heard and denied, the Commission has jurisdiction to order the creation of the District. NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED by the City Commission of the City of Bozeman, Montana: Section 1. Intent to Create the Bozeman Downtown Business Improvement District (Bozeman Downtown B.I.D.). The Bozeman City Commission creates the Bozeman Downtown B.I.D. and declares the purposes for which the assessments collected by the Bozeman Downtown B.I.D. shall be used are the statutory purposes set forth in Business Improvement District Law, Sections 7-12-1101 through 7-12-1144, MCA, for the funding of all uses and projects within the City of Bozeman as specified in a future Bozeman Downtown B.I.D. annual work plan and budget and as set out in Section 7-12-1133, MCA. Section 2. Name of District. The District shall be known as the Bozeman Downtown Business Improvement District (Bozeman Downtown B.I.D.). Section 3. Limits and Boundaries of District. The boundary of the Bozeman Downtown B.I.D. is shown on the map within Exhibit “A”. Section 4. Benefited Property. The properties included within the limits and boundaries of the District as described in Section 3 and as listed on Exhibit “B” are hereby declared to be the Bozeman Downtown B.I.D., and it is recognized those properties will benefit and be benefited by the Bozeman Downtown B.I.D., and as such will be assessed for the costs of the Bozeman Downtown B.I.D.; and Section 5. General Character of the Services to Be Performed. The services to be performed by the Bozeman Downtown B.I.D. will be for the funding of all uses and projects within the Bozeman Downtown B.I.D.as prescribed in Section 7-12-1133 MCA and as specified in the Bozeman Downtown B.I.D. annual work plan and budget, once developed. Section 6. Assessment Methods/Property to Be Assessed. The assessment methods will be the method authorized by Section 7-12-1133 (d), MCA. For the first three fiscal years (2011-2013) of the downtown business improvement district the total property owner assessment shall not exceed $114,000.00; that for the fourth through seventh years (2014-2017) the property owner assessment shall not exceed $120,000.00; and finally, for the eighth through tenth years (2018- 2020) the property owner assessment shall not exceed $126,000.00. These assessment limitations may be exceeded with a favorable vote by the owners of more than 60% of the area of the property in the district. 252 Resolution 4256 Stating the City Commission’s Intent to re-create/extend the life of the Downtown Business Improvement District Pursuant to Title 7, Chpt. 12, Part 11, Montana Code Annotated Section 7. Duration of District. The Bozeman Downtown B.I.D. shall be in effect for a period of ten (10) years as prescribed in Section 7-12-1141, MCA. Section 8. Adoption of Ordinance 1790. The Bozeman Downtown B.I.D. shall not be effective until adoption by the City Commission of Ordinance 1790 and the passage of 30 days after final adoption of said ordinance. APPROVED by the City Commission of the City of Bozeman this 21st day of June 2010. ___________________________________ JEFFREY K. KRAUSS Mayor ATTEST: ____________________________________ STACY ULMEN, CMC City Clerk APPROVED AS TO FORM: ___________________________________ GREG SULLIVAN Bozeman City Attorney Exhibit A: Map of properties subject to the jurisdiction of the Bozeman Downtown B.I.D. Exhibit B: List of all properties subject to the jurisdiction of the Bozeman Downtown B.I.D. Exhibit C: Protests Received from the owner of the Hall Commercial Office Building and from Clyde Robert Cox 253 254 255 256 257 258 259 260 261 262 Recreation/Extension of the Downtown Bozeman Business Improvement District Page 1 of 5 Commission Memorandum REPORT TO: Honorable Mayor and City Commission FROM: Greg Sullivan, City Attorney Stacy Ulmen, City Clerk Chris Kukulski, City Manager SUBJECT: Resolution No. 4256, a Resolution of Intent to Re-create/Extend the life of the Bozeman Downtown Business Improvement District in the City’s Downtown Area that expired May 15, 2010. MEETING DATE: May 24, 2010 AGENDA ITEM TYPE: Action RECOMMENDATION: That the City Commission adopt Resolution No. 4256, a Resolution of Intent to Re-create/Extend the Bozeman Downtown Business Improvement District, and set Monday, June 21, 2010 as the date of the public hearing for hearing and passing on protests and deciding on a final resolution for creation of the district. BACKGROUND: On May 15, 2000, the Bozeman Downtown Business Improvement District was created by Ordinance No. 1517. Pursuant to state law, the District expires on the 10-year anniversary of its creation. §7-12-1141, MCA. Now, numerous landowners in the district, in coordination with the Downtown Bozeman Partnership, express an interest in re-creating/extending the life of the Bozeman Downtown Business Improvement District, pursuant to the provisions of §7-12-1101, MCA, et seq., MCA. Purpose and Programs of the Downtown B.I.D.: The purpose of extending/recreating the District is to continue to aid in promoting the health, safety, prosperity, security, and general welfare of the inhabitants of the district and the people of Montana as well and to be of special benefit of the property within the boundaries of the district. The Downtown B.I.D.’s current mission statement is: MISSION STATEMENT: The downtown Bozeman Business Improvement District (BID) is an organization of downtown property owners who through thoughtful, pro-active collaboration and partnership with local government, business owners, residents and citizens strive to create a shared vision and voice for the community of downtown Bozeman. The BID will commit resources, identify, plan and act on short-term and long-term initiatives otherwise unavailable to individual owners. The BID has a goal of ensuring the long-term preservation and vitality of the city’s underlying economic, cultural, social and 263 Recreation/Extension of the Downtown Bozeman Business Improvement District Page 2 of 5 environmental assets. The BID will work together to keep our downtown a safe, beautiful and vibrant place. Downtown B.I.D. monies support numerous programs including installation and maintenance of the summer flower baskets, holiday lighting, and a year-round maintenance employee. The BID also contributes funds to the Downtown Partnership for staffing and operating the Downtown Visitors Center. The 2009 Annual Report is attached to this staff report. According to the 2009 Annual Report, the Downtown B.I.D. was established to undertake a variety of “clean and safe” programs on behalf of the property owners in the downtown district and is comprised of downtown property owners that pay a voluntary assessment to fund large-scale improvement and beautification projects. The Downtown B.I.D employs staff to perform a variety of tasks associated with the following programs: Maintenance; Graffiti Removal; Flower Baskets; Holiday Decorations. The report also states that renewing the Downtown B.I.D will allow community to benefit from the continuation of the Downtown B.I.D programs that make downtown Bozeman the best in the state. The Maintenance, Graffiti Removal, Flower Basket, and Holiday Decoration Programs would continue to keep downtown clean, safe, beautiful and vibrant thus benefiting the business owners, property owners, visitors and the entire Bozeman community. Below are some interesting statistics demonstrating the quantity of work accomplished by the Downtown B.I.D in 2009. 850 Number of hours worked by BID maintenance staff 2550 Number of trash receptacles emptied 508 Number of graffiti tags removed 152 Number of flower baskets installed 135 Number of consecutive days flowers watered 20520 Number of flower baskets watered 100 Number of holiday decorations installed 380 Number of street lamp banners installed Chris Naumann, Director of the Downtown Bozeman Partnership, and primary staff person to the existing Downtown B.I.D. and its current Board of Trustees, will be present at your meeting on Monday night to discuss the current Downtown B.I.D. programs and budget and to answer any specific questions you may have regarding the expenditure of district funds. Boundaries of the District: The proposed boundary of the district is the boundary as shown on the Exhibit A to the Resolution (attached), which was included with each petition. The boundary is not proposed to change from the current district boundary. Recreation/Extension Process: Several legal steps will need to be followed to recreate/extend the Downtown B.I.D. First, the Commission must adopt the attached Resolution of Intent. Following adoption, the City Clerk will publish notice of the passage of the resolution of intent in a local newspaper as well as mail notices of the passage of the Resolution of Intent to each property owner. The notice must identify several important items, primary among those being the ability to protest the creation of the district. 264 Recreation/Extension of the Downtown Bozeman Business Improvement District Page 3 of 5 After a 15-day protest period has run (see discussion below) the Commission must “hear and pass upon all protests.” §7-12-1114(1), MCA. At that time, the Commission will, based on the protests and the Commission’s intent, adopt a final Resolution creating the district. If the Commission recreates/extends the district via Resolution, state law also requires adoption of an ordinance. §7-12-1121(1), MCA. The City Clerk and City Attorney will prepare the ordinance for your adoption within a very short time (e.g. one week) after the final resolution is adopted. Later this summer, after the ordinance becomes effective, the Downtown B.I.D. will present a work plan and budget for your approval. If you approve the work plan and budget, the Finance Department will assess the properties pursuant to the assessment method (see below). Petitions: Numerous owners of real property submitted petitions requesting the City Commission create a Business Improvement District for the City of Bozeman (hereinafter referred to as the “Bozeman Downtown B.I.D.”). Those petitions were received by the City Clerk on Wednesday, May 5th. The original petitions are located on file with the City Clerk. The City Attorney reviewed the individual petitions and informed the City Clerk’s Office that based on the content of the petitions and the information included on the spreadsheet provided by the Downtown Business Partnership, the owners of more than 60% of the area of the property proposed in the petition to be included in the Downtown BID signed a valid petition. Thus, the City Attorney verifies the owners have met the statutory threshold for recreating/extending the district as required by Sect. 7-12-1111, MCA as the petitions received to date were signed by owners of greater than 60% of the area of the area included in the district. Resolution of Intent: Attached to this memo is the Resolution of Intent. The Resolution generally speaks for itself; however, we’d like to specifically bring your attention to the manner in which the assessments are to be made. The proposed method of calculating the assessment is the same as the current practice and is not proposed to change. The Resolution states, at section 7: The petitioners understand that each lot or parcel of land which is owned by each Petitioner or the entity each Petitioner represents, including the improvements on the lot or parcel, will be assessed for that part of the whole cost of the proposed District that its taxable valuation bears to the total taxable valuation of the property of the proposed District all subject to the proposed budget for each year. The Resolution of Intent also contains a limitation on the increase in the amount of the annual assessments. The following is suggested by the Downtown B.I.D. Board as evidenced by their attached Resolution. The limitation would cap the total assessment at no more than $126,000 except by a favorable vote of more than 60% of the owners. Should the Commission approve the Resolution of Intent as written this limitation must be included in the final ordinance as the limitation could be an important consideration for property owners in determining whether to protest the recreation of the Downtown B.I.D. See Resolution of Intent at Sect. 6. If the Commission approves the Resolution of Intent, the City Clerk shall prepare a Notice of Adoption. The Notice of Adoption of this Resolution of Intent shall be published and a copy of the Notice of Adoption will be mailed to every owner of property listed in Exhibit “B”, which comprises the properties within the Bozeman Downtown B.I.D. Protest: The 15-day protest period will begin on the day following the first publication of the notice of passage of the resolution of intent (May 30, 2010) and will end at 5:00 pm on June 14, 2010. Protests must be delivered to the City Clerk and can be done so in person, via mail, or via email. 265 Recreation/Extension of the Downtown Bozeman Business Improvement District Page 4 of 5 UNRESOLVED ISSUES: The only identified unresolved issue is whether board members whose terms continue beyond the expiration date of the current district must be reappointed if the Commission recreates/extends the district. The City Attorney will evaluate this issue and present you an opinion and process at the time the ordinance is adopted. There are no other identified unresolved issues. As stated above, several additional steps must be taken to finalize the recreation/extension of the district. At the end of the protest period the City Clerk will present a memorandum indicating the number of protests received, if any, and will also present a final resolution recreating/extending the district for your consideration. If approved, the Commission would then need to approve an ordinance on first and second reading. ALTERNATIVES: The law requires the Commission to adopt a Resolution of Intent upon a legally adequate petition. Thus, at this time, the Commission is bound to adopt the Resolution of Intent unless a showing is made the petitions are not valid or do not meet the statutory threshold. The Commission may, of course, amend specific provisions in the Resolution of Intent such as duration, the assessment methodology and limitations, etc. Staff, however, recommends the provisions as included in the Resolution of Intent. FISCAL EFFECTS: The fiscal effects to the city of Bozeman government are nominal. The effects include staff time in the Finance Department administering the finances of the district and conducting tasks associated with including the assessments on the yearly city assessments mailed out to each property owner. Each summer, prior to final approval of the overall budget, the Downtown B.I.D. is required to present a work plan and district budget to the City Commission for approval. The Commission will, based on the approved work plan and budget, levy an assessment against each property within the District to raise the approved budgeted amount. For your information, the total assessments for the District for 2009 totaled $114,000 and the total assessments for the District, if re-created, for 2010 are estimated to not exceed $114,000. This amount represents the entire budget for the District. According to Chris Naumann, the petitioners understand this amount to be the proposed budget for the upcoming year and also that the assessments may tend to fluctuate from year to year during the duration of the district. Attachments: · Resolution No. 4256, Resolution of Intent to Re-create/Extend the Life of District. o Exhibit A. Map of properties subject to the jurisdiction of the Bozeman Downtown B.I.D. o Exhibit B. List of all properties subject to the jurisdiction of the Bozeman Downtown B.I.D. · Copy of Notice to be published and mailed to each owner within the district. · Letter from City Clerk acknowledging receipt of Petitions. · Email from City Attorney regarding review of Petitions. · Ordinance No. 1517, original ordinance creating the Bozeman Downtown B.I.D (from 2000). · Copy of Petition for recreation/extension of the district. · 2009 Downtown B.I.D. Annual Report · Resolution 2010-01 of the Downtown B.I.D. Board Regulating the Future Growth of the Downtown B.I.D. Property Assessment and Requesting the City Commission Do the Same 266