Danville Residents To Vote Whether To Increase Lighting District Fees

DANVILLE, CA — The Danville Town Council approved a resolution to initiate a vote on whether to increase fees for the Lighting and Landscape Assessment District, which have not been adjusted since 2003. The ballot proposal would increase rates by an average $87 per year per single-family homeowner, though individual amounts will vary.

All Danville property owners already contribute to the LLAD, which is used to fund parks, streetlights, and other landscaped public spaces in the town. However, the original assessment structures did not include an escalator to address cost increases and additional facilities, which has resulted in a growing funding gap. The town has taken steps to reduce expenses, like retrofitting streetlights and introducing more sophisticated water management systems.

Despite these steps, LLAD revenue has increased by 3.1% since 2003, though expenditures have risen 78%, and many costs are covered by the town’s General Fund. Since 2003, the General Fund’s contribution to the LLAD fund has increased by 607%, the town said. If the LLAD adjustment is not approved, the General Fund will continue covering the shortfall, but services may be cut eventually.

The LLAD would include an escalator that increases costs that are capped at either 3% or the Bay Area CPI, whichever is lower. It will also include an updated assessment tool to spread costs more fairly, including per-unit apartment costs rather than per-parcel.

Ballots will be mailed in April, and will contain information on how much each individual homeowner will pay. A town hall meeting on the subject is planned for early April, and the ballot period will close in May. Results will be announced at a town council meeting in June.

To learn more, see here and here, or read the staff report.