Agenda - Council - 03/14/2017 - Laserfiche WebLink

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8. Council reviews the proposed assessment roll and orders an assessment hearing. 9. Staff publishes a hearing notice and mails notice of the hearing date and proposed assessments to the affected property owners as provided in Minn. Stat. § 429.061. 10. Council conducts the assessment hearing and adopts, revises, or rejects the resolution determining the amount of the total expense the City will pay, if any, and establishing the assessment roll. If adopted, Council authorizes certification of the assessment to the County Auditor. 11. Council awards contracts based on the bids received. 12. Staff certifies the assessment roll to the County Auditor. 13. Staff supervises construction and prepares payments. SECTION 5. FINANCING OF PUBLIC IMPROVEMENTS. The City encourages public improvement projects when the area benefiting and needing such improvements develop. Examples of this policy can be seen through the subdivision regulations, zoning ordinance, and building codes. Developers are required to provide the needed improvements and services before development occurs, thereby avoiding unexpected hardships on the property owners purchasing such property and the general public. However, it is recognized that certain areas of the City have developed without all needed public improvements (e.g. parks, water, sewer, and street improvements) and that methods must be found to provide these improvements without causing undue hardships on the general public or the individual property owners. Special assessments are generally accepted as a means by which areas can obtain improvements or services; however, the method of financing assessment is a critical factor to both the City and the property owner. Full project costs spread over a very short term can cause an undue hardship on the property owner and, likewise, city costs and systems costs spread over a long period of time can cause an undue hardship on the City. It is the policy of the City to not defer assessments except in cases where hardship to senior citizens 65 years of age or older, or persons retired by virtue of a permanent and total disability, would result. Also, the City Council may elect to defer assessments on undeveloped land for a specified length of time or until the lands are developed. Terms and conditions of any such deferral will be established in the resolution adopting the assessments. SECTION & GENERAL ASSESSMENT POLICIES APPLICABLE TO ALL TYPES OF IMPROVEMENTS. The cost of any improvement shall be assessed based upon benefits received. The following general principles shall be used as a basis of the City's assessment policy: 1. Project Cost. The "project cost" of an improvement includes the costs of all necessary construction work required to accomplish the improvement (direct costs),plus engineering, legal, administrative, financing and other contingent costs, including acquisition of right-of- way and other property (indirect costs). The finance charges include all costs of financing the project. These costs include, but are not limited to, financial consultant's fees, bond rating agency fee, bond attorney's fees, and capitalized interest. The interest charged to the project shall be included as financing charges. 4