Scotts Valley council approves intent to form EIFD, appoints members to new financing authority

Scotts Valley's City Council on a unanimous voice vote adopted a resolution declaring its intention to form an Enhanced Infrastructure Financing District (EIFD) and to establish a Public Financing Authority to govern it. The move signals the city’s interest in pursuing a tax‑increment tool to help fund infrastructure and attract additional public and private investment.

The council's action authorizes staff to prepare the EIFD financing plan and bylaws and to conduct the statutorily required public hearings and notices. Consultant Joe Dieguez of Cosmot Companies told the council the tool is “not a new tax” but a value‑capture mechanism that can set aside a portion of future assessed property tax growth within a defined boundary for infrastructure such as water, sewer, streetscape, broadband, wildfire prevention and gap financing for affordable housing. Dieguez presented order‑of‑magnitude scenarios showing that a city‑only allocation would…