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Council sets assessment program rules, approves three improvement schedules for Twin Rivers area
Summary
The council, sitting as the Board of Equalization, approved assessment schedules for paving, water and sewer districts in the Twin Rivers/Business Park area and set an interest policy: 2% above the city's bond rate with up to 20-year repayment for district bonds.
On April 15, the North Platte City Council, convened as the Board of Equalization, approved three assessment schedules affecting the Twin Rivers/Business Park area and set a policy for financing those assessments.
Staff explained the city's method for assessments: total project cost divided by frontage (linear feet) to generate a per-front-foot charge for paving, water and sewer improvements. "What we, do is ... take the total cost, figure out the frontage, the linear footage of the property, and divide the cost by, the linear foot footage," city staff said during the session.
The board approved paving District 836 (Iron Trail Drive/Twin Rivers Business Park segment), Water Extension District 267, and Sanitary Sewer Connection District 21. The board adopted a financing convention: district bonds will use an interest rate equal to 2% above the city's bond rate for the project and may be structured with up to a 20-year payback period. Councilmember Volz moved the amendment to set the rate and term; the council approved the amendment and the underlying schedules.
Staff and councilmembers discussed why different district tools were used. Paving and water extension districts were assessed by frontage and commence immediately; the sanitary sewer item was handled as a connection district so agricultural land and other parcels that might not immediately connect would not be assessed until they actually tie into the sanitary system. "The extension district commences immediately. The connection district is a connection fee. So when it's installed, there's no charge until they connect," staff explained.
Development representatives, including a development-corporation representative, described the business-park context and said assembled publicly owned parcels had been an important recruitment tool. Staff and developer representatives said the 2% over-bond benchmark and 20-year payback were chosen to balance city administrative costs, developer financing advantages, and credit risk to the city. "If we can establish something we're comfortable with and can be consistent, it would be easier to administer moving forward," a staff member said.
Councilmembers asked about bond indebtedness and the city's overall borrowing: staff said general-obligation and other categories of outstanding debt were significant, and that the city will schedule a future work session to explain municipal bonding and classification.
The board passed all three schedules and the financing terms; staff will proceed with final bond planning and the administrative steps required to implement the assessments.
