The District completed four major tasks this week: (a) received replies to the request for proposals (“RFP”) for the Bond Anticipation Note; (b) mailed the assessment letters for the Bond Anticipation Note; (c) mailed the letters for the operations and maintenance assessments; and (d) updated and refined the website.
1. Replies to the RFP for $21,310,000
The District received the replies to the RFP from lenders and investors for the BAN this afternoon. Staff is reviewing the replies and clarifying their terms and conditions with the proposers. The Board will discuss the replies at the July 9th workshop.
2. Bond Anticipation Note Assessment Letters Mailed June 20, 2019
The assessment notices for the BAN were mailed June 20, 2019. By law, we must mail the notices to the resident’s primary mailing address as maintained by the Manatee County Property Appraisers’ Office. The District will also send additional notices to residents at their direction. In addition, at resident’s requests, the District has sent email copies of the notices. We will continue to make every effort to assist residents in this process.
3. Assessment Notices for the Special Assessments for Operations and Maintenance
Mailed notice for the assessments for operations and maintenance of $1,000 per home will be mailed today, June 28, 2019. These assessments are one-time assessment to fund: (a) district operations and (b) litigation expenses. But for the Garrett lawsuit, the District would not have needed to impose this assessment.
4. Website Improvements
With input from Board Members and the public, staff continues to improve our website. We are in process of updating the landing page with information on “What’s New” and “Upcoming Meetings.” We have resolved all known issues with subscribing (opt-in) to the newsletter. Any resident who is unsure of whether they have subscribed or who is having other issues with the email delivery of the newsletter is encouraged to contact the Manager’s office. Finally, for those using mobile devices to access the website, your device’s screen size and resolution may be limited thereby compromising the menu on the website. In these cases please access the menu bars shown at the top right of the screen to access the menu using the arrow keys.
5. Up Coming District Meetings
The District will hold a workshop on July 9th in the Card Room and its regularly scheduled meeting on July 12th in the Lakeside Room.
6. Enforcement of Directly Billed Assessments
The District is using the direct bill method to collect the special assessments for the BAN and for operations and maintenance. The District chose this method because of the timing required for the District’s budget and to support the proposed BANs, if issued. Chapter 170.10 is very specific in its instructions to governments, like ours, if a property owner fails to pay the assessments when they are due. The statute requires the District foreclose on property owners who fail to pay their assessments. There is no discretion allowed under 170.10.