Chapter 12.12
LOCAL IMPROVEMENT DISTRICTS*
Sections:
12.12.020 Proceedings to comply with state statute.
12.12.050 Drawing up assessment roll.
12.12.070 Funds created—Source of deposits designated.
12.12.090 Notice of assessment to be mailed.
12.12.100 Form of bonds and interest coupons.
12.12.110 Time of bond and interest payments.
12.12.120 Costs to be included in assessment.
12.12.130 Penalties for delinquent assessment installments.
* For statutory provisions authorizing cities to form local improvement districts in the manner provided by state law, see RCW 35.43.030; for provisions authorizing cities of the second class to provide for the making of local improvements, see RCW 35.23.440(49).
12.12.010 Definitions.
In this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires:
“Attorney” means the regularly appointed or acting attorney of the city or any attorney appointed or employed to serve the city for the time being, either generally or specially.
“City” means the city of Shelton.
“Cost” means all of the costs and expenses of providing for and making an improvement and levying and collecting the assessment therefor that under the law may be included in an assessment against benefited property.
“Council” means the council or other legislative authority of the city.
“Engineer” means the regularly appointed or acting civil engineer of the city or any engineer appointed or employed to serve the city for the time being, either generally or specially.
“Improvement” means a local improvement of which the cost and expense, in whole or in part, is to be or under the law may be assessed against property specially benefited by the improvement.
“Treasurer-clerk” means the city treasurer-clerk. (Ord. 1921-0518 (part), 2018; prior code § 12.28.010)
12.12.020 Proceedings to comply with state statute.
Whenever the council shall direct that some or all of the cost of an improvement shall be paid by the levy and collection of special assessments on benefited property, the proceedings therefor shall be in accordance with an act of the legislature of the state of Washington entitled “An Act relating to local improvements in cities and towns, and repealing certain acts and parts of acts,” approved March 17, 1911, and acts amendatory thereof and supplemental thereto (RCW Chapters 35.43—35.54), and with this chapter and ordinances amendatory hereof and supplemental hereto. If a provision of an ordinance be repugnant to or inconsistent with a statutory provision, the latter shall control. (Ord. 1921-0518 (part), 2018; prior code § 12.28.020)
12.12.030 Filing petitions.
Petitions for improvements, objections to proposed improvements, objections to assessments, and all other communications and documents addressed to or intended for consideration by the council shall be filed with the treasurer-clerk. (Ord. 1921-0518 (part), 2018; prior code § 12.28.030)
12.12.040 Payment plans.
There shall be two plans of payment of assessments for improvements, namely, the “immediate payment” and “payment by bonds or installments.” The plan to be followed shall be the plan petitioned for, in the case of an improvement made upon petition, and in other cases it shall be the plan designated in the ordinance directing the improvement. (Prior code § 12.28.040)
12.12.050 Drawing up assessment roll.
Within twenty days after the cost of an improvement assessable against benefited property shall have been ascertained, or within such further time as the council may allow, the engineer with the advice of the attorney shall prepare and file with the treasurer-clerk an assessment roll containing the description of each lot, tract, or parcel of land or other property to be assessed, the amount to be assessed against the same and the name of the owner if known. The omission of or a mistake in giving the name of an owner shall in nowise affect the regularity or validity of an assessment. In the cost to be assessed against benefited property there shall be included interest upon outstanding temporary warrants to a date ninety days beyond the date of filing the roll with the treasurer-clerk. (Ord. 1921-0518 (part), 2018; prior code § 12.28.050)
12.12.060 Confirming roll.
When an assessment roll has been confirmed, it shall be delivered to the city treasurer-clerk with the proper certificate that the roll has been confirmed. (Prior code § 12.28.060)
12.12.070 Funds created—Source of deposits designated.
A. An ordinance ordering an improvement shall have the effect of establishing in the city treasury a fund for the district to be known as “L.I.D, # ___, Construction Fund,” upon which warrants to pay the cost of the improvement shall be drawn. An ordinance confirming an assessment roll in a case where the plan of payment in installments has been adopted shall have the effect of establishing a fund for the district to be known as “Local Improvement Fund, District #___.“
B. Into the construction fund there shall be paid, in a case where the immediate payment plan has been adopted: (a) all money derived from assessments, including penalties and interest, and in every other case (b) the proceeds of the sale of bonds, including premiums and accrued interest, and in every case (c) money appropriated from the general fund to pay any part of the cost of the improvement, (d) money derived from fines and penalties paid by or chargeable to a contractor in respect of the construction of the improvement, and (e) money derived from other sources and directed by the council to be applied to the cost of the improvement.
C. Into the local improvement fund shall be paid: (a) any balance remaining in the construction fund after the payment of all warrants drawn against it, and (b) all money derived from assessments, including penalties and interest.
D. From the local improvement fund the bonds of the district shall be paid. (Ord. 1921-0518 (part), 2018; prior code § 12.28.070)
12.12.080 Temporary warrants.
The cost of an improvement shall be paid in the first instance by temporary warrants drawn upon the construction fund of the district. Such warrants shall bear interest from their date until paid at the rate of seven percent per annum unless the council shall have specified a different rate, and they shall be called and paid as other warrants, in the order of their issuance, as soon as and whenever there is sufficient money in the fund; provided, however, in the case of a district in which the assessment is to be paid in installments, temporary warrants shall cease to draw interest not later than twenty days after the expiration of the thirty day period allowed for the prepayment of assessments without interest, whether the warrants be called for payment or not. (Ord. 1921-0518 (part), 2018; prior code § 12.28.080)
12.12.090 Notice of assessment to be mailed.
It shall be the duty of the treasurer, within five days after the first publication of the notice of collection of an assessment required by statute, to mail a copy of the notice to each owner of assessed property named in the roll whose address is shown thereon or known to him; and when an assessment is payable in installments, it shall be his duty to mail to each owner named in the roll whose address is shown thereon or known to him, not more than twenty nor less than ten days before an installment will become delinquent, a notice thereof and of the date of delinquency. This section is directory only, and failure to comply with it shall have no effect upon the validity of an assessment or an installment or upon the lien or the maturity thereof. (Ord. 1567-0602 (part), 2002; prior code § 12.28.090)
12.12.100 Form of bonds and interest coupons.
The form of bonds to be issued in local improvement districts in the city of Shelton shall be substantially as follows:
No. ___ $__
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
STATE OF WASHINGTON, CITY OF SHELTON
LOCAL IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT NO. ___
N.B. Neither the holder nor the owner of any bond or warrant issued under the provisions of this act shall have any claim therefor against the city or town by which the same is issued; except for payment from the special assessments made for the improvement for which said bond or warrant was issued, and except as against the local improvement guaranty fund of such city or town, and the city or town shall not be liable to any holder or owner of such bond or warrant for any loss to the guaranty fund occurring in the lawful operation thereof by the city or town. The remedy of the holder or owner of a bond or warrant in case of nonpayment, shall be confined to the enforcement of the assessment and to the guaranty fund.
The City of Shelton, Washington, a municipal corporation of the State of Washington, hereby promises to pay to bearer the sum of ____ DOLLARS in lawful money of the United States of America, with interest thereon from the date hereof at the rate of __% per annum payable annually, upon presentation and surrender to the City Treasurer-Clerk of this bond and the annexed interest coupons as they severally become due. This bond, both principal and interest, is payable only out of Local Improvement Fund, District No. , created by Ordinance No. ___ of the City and from the Local Improvement Guaranty Fund of the City created by RCW Chapter 35.54.
This bond is one of a series of bonds aggregating in all the principal sum of $ ___, and is payable on or before the day of ___, 19__, and is subject to call by the Treasurer-Clerk of said City whenever there shall be sufficient money in said Local Improvement Fund, District No.___ , to pay the same and all unpaid bonds of the series of which this is one which are prior in numerical order to this bond, over and above an amount sufficient for the payment of the interest next accruing on the unpaid bonds of this series.
In case this bond is called for payment before its final maturity, each and every interest coupon not accrued at the time of said payment shall be void. Call for payment of this bond shall be made by the City Treasurer-Clerk by one publication of such call in the official city newspaper at least thirty days prior to said call date, and when such call is made, this bond shall be paid on the day the next interest coupon thereon shall become due after such call.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the City of Shelton, Washington, has caused this bond to be signed by its Mayor and attested by its Treasurer-Clerk under the corporate seal of said City, and has caused the interest coupons hereto attached to be executed with the facsimile signatures of said officials, this ___ day of ___, 19___.
CITY OF SHELTON, WASHINGTON
By _____________________________
Mayor.
Attest:
_______________
City Treasurer-Clerk.
The interest coupon to be attached to said bonds shall be in substantially the following form:
No. ___ $___
On the ___ day of ____, 19 ___, the City of Shelton, Washington, will pay to bearer at the office of the City Treasurer-Clerk, the sum of ___ Dollars, said sum being the interest due that date on Bond numbered __ of Local Improvement District No. ___ of said City, out of Local Improvement Fund, District No. ___, provided, that this coupon is subject to all the terms and conditions contained in the bond to which it is attached.
CITY OF SHELTON, WASHINGTON
By _____________________________
Mayor.
Attest:
_______________
City Treasurer-Clerk.
(Prior code § 12.28.100)
12.12.110 Time of bond and interest payments.
The time within which such assessments or installments thereof shall be paid shall not exceed twelve years and the number of installments shall be less by two than the number of years which the bonds issued to pay for said improvement may run.
The interest rate on said bond shall not exceed eight percent per annum.
Assessments or installments thereof when delinquent in addition to such interest shall bear a penalty of not less than five percent.
Interest and penalty shall be included in and shall be a part of the assessment rate. (Prior code § 12.28.110)
12.12.120 Costs to be included in assessment.
Whenever any local improvement herein authorized shall be ordered, there shall be included in the cost and expense thereof to be assessed against the property specially benefited by such improvement and included in the district created to pay the same, the cost of that portion of said improvement included within the limits of any street intersection spaces, the estimated cost and expense of all engineering and surveying necessary for said improvement to be done by and under the direction of the city engineer, ascertaining the ownership of the lots or parcels of land included in the assessment district, advertising, mailing and publishing all notices required to be advertised, published or mailed, accounting and clerical labor, books and blanks extended or used by the city treasurer-clerk in connection with said improvement. (Prior code § 12.28.120)
12.12.130 Penalties for delinquent assessment installments.
Each delinquent installment of a local improvement district assessment shall be subject, at the time of delinquency, to a charge of twelve percent penalty levied on both principal and interest due upon that installment. (Ord. 1267, 1989)