Governing body approves Lawrence Bay CID to refinance future special assessments

The Topeka governing body voted 8-2 on April 8 to adopt an ordinance creating the Lawrence Bay Community Improvement District to refinance and extend payment of certain future special assessments.

Deputy Director of Planning and Development Rhiannon Freeman told the council that the CID will allow the future specials on 16 lots owned by Klossman-controlled entities and three city-owned lots to be ‘‘spread out over the course of 20 years’’ and that doing so will reduce the current monthly special-assessment amounts. Freeman said the plan reduces payments on developer-owned lots from roughly $300 per month to about $185 per month once issuance costs and interest are included.

The city’s presentation noted the CID will use assessment payments to pay interest and principal on bonds issued for the financing; the ordinance circulated at the meeting included the estimated assessment amounts for each of the 16 developer lots and the three city lots.

Council members debated the item at length during a public hearing convened before the final vote. Councilwoman Hiller and others sought clarification about which obligations would remain in force and whether past-due specials would be addressed under previously approved development agreements. Freeman and Deputy City Manager Braxton Copley confirmed that past-due specials were addressed in an earlier development agreement and that the CID is intended to refinance existing future specials rather than to create a new subsidy.

Two members of the public spoke at the hearing. A resident who identified herself at the podium read a 10-year-old Topeka Capital-Journal editorial that criticized past city practices around special-assessment districts and urged more protections for taxpayers. A second commenter, identified in the transcript as Mr. McCurr, backed the CID and described it as ‘‘the most creative way to make this property add value,’’ arguing refinancing could make lots affordable enough for new buyers.

Deputy Mayor Kell moved adoption of the ordinance; the motion was seconded and then carried on roll call 8-2. The clerk’s roll call recorded the following votes: Yes — Councilmember Duncan; Councilwoman Hofer; Mayor Michael A. Padilla; Councilwoman Hiller; Councilwoman Ortiz; Deputy Mayor Kell; Councilman Miller; Councilman Dobler. No — Councilmember Valdivia Acala; Councilmember Banks. The meeting minutes show the motion carried and the ordinance adopted that evening.

Because the ordinance authorizes issuing debt and establishes assessment methods, the council’s action sets the financing structure for the parcels described in the legal description attached to the ordinance. The ordinance text circulated at the meeting includes legal descriptions and the city’s calculation method for the assessments; those specific figures are referenced in the planning department’s handout distributed to council members.

The CID was one of several Lawrence Bay items that had previously appeared on the March agenda; staff said the reinvestment housing incentive district (RHID) portion had been submitted to the state commerce agency as part of earlier steps in the project.

The council did not take further action on related lots outside the 19 parcels covered in the ordinance; speakers repeatedly noted other outstanding special-assessment balances on additional Klossman-controlled properties and asked about foreclosure and collection options, which staff addressed in summary during the hearing.

The ordinance and accompanying assessment schedule will be posted with the city clerk’s office as part of the official record.