Council approves budgets and levies for multiple CFDs and moves to form Saddleback community facilities districts
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Summary
Peoria’s council held public hearings and approved final budgets and tax levies for four Community Facilities Districts and passed a resolution to form four of five Saddleback CFDs, setting a $2.65 target tax rate and bond issuance safeguards.
The Peoria City Council on June 3 completed public hearings and unanimous votes to adopt final budgets and tax levies for several community facilities districts (CFDs) and approved formation actions for a multi‑district Saddleback master plan.
Staff explained the routine CFD public‑hearing process and then summarized each district’s purpose: to enable bond financing of public infrastructure that serves specific developments. Development and finance staff described the Mystic CFD (formed 2020) with a proposed tax rate of $2.65 per $100 of limited assessed valuation, Vistancia North (also formed 2020) with a proposed combined rate targeting $2.65, Vistancia (formed 2002) whose rate declined to $1.62 given rising assessed values, and Vistancia West (formed 2014) with a proposed rate of $1.64 as the district winds down.
Deputy City Manager Kevin Burke and the city’s CFD team walked council through the Saddleback proposal: a five‑district plan for a roughly 6,000‑plus acre master‑planned community. Burke described CFDs as standalone taxing entities that issue general‑obligation bonds to fund “large streets, large water mains, large sewer infrastructure” within the district. He said the city applies policy protections to limit homeowner exposure: a target tax rate (the presentation cited $2.65 per $100 as the target for these developments), a 25‑year debt payment cycle to limit long tails, and developer standby contribution agreements plus upfront security prior to bond issuance.
Financial staff said the Saddleback CFD series could support up to $300 million in maximum bond financing across the districts and emphasized protections: the developer must sign a standby contribution agreement and post funds before bond issuance to secure payments if tax revenues fall short. The council approved resolutions and organizing actions for Saddleback CFDs 1, 2, 4 and 5 (CFD 3 was deferred), and then convened as district boards later in the meeting to take required district‑level actions. Multiple CFD budget items for Mystic, Vistancia North, Vistancia and Vistancia West were approved during separate CFD board sessions earlier in the meeting; all votes on the CFD items recorded at council were unanimous.
Council members asked technical questions but took no additional conditions beyond standard protections in city CFD guidelines. Staff said CFDs preserve citywide bonding capacity by concentrating debt to benefit only the district, and that district infrastructure acquisitions must follow public procurement rules.
Council approved the CFD budget adoptions and the Saddleback formation resolutions by unanimous votes.