Election to Secure Financing for Sewer Design Plans Could Be Further Off

The Malibu City Council is expected to consider the next steps in forming a Community Facilities District at its meeting next week as part of an effort to finance the design of the proposed Civic Center Wastewater Treatment Facility.

Following a public hearing, the Malibu City Council is expected to vote on whether to continue with the formation of a CFD and call a special election for the levy of special taxes on select commercial property owners in the district at its Aug. 13 meeting.

City Manager Jim Thorsen previously said the city was willing to join the CFD, which would have allowed the election to take place within a week.

However, the city was unable to get the waivers from the Civic Center commercial property owners that would be included in the district, according to a city staff report prepared on Aug. 1 by Assistant City Manager Reva Feldman. Without the consent of all the property owners, the vote on the proposed ballot proposition cannot be held until Nov. 20. 

If the council votes to move forward with the formation of the CFD and the special election, only property owners within the CFD would be allowed to vote, she said.

If at least two-thirds of the property owners approve the tax, the $6.5 million in bonds needed to fund the design plans could be issued by December, according to Feldman.

The city declared its intent to form the district on June 27, the first of many steps needed to finance the design of the proposed Civic Center Wastewater Treatment Facility. The city has already spent $2.6 million on the plans, with up to $4 million more needed for the final designs, according to Feldman.

Under a Memorandum of Understanding with the Regional Water Quality Board, the city is required to meet strict timelines to ensure that progress is being made on the design and construction of the sewer. The MOU requires commercial properties in the Civic Center Prohibition Area be connected to a centralized wastewater treatment facility by November 15, 2015.

Because of the extended timeline for the election, the city may not be able to meet the strict timeline, according to Feldman.

The council voted last month to delay a vote on approving $1.5 million in design costs until the CFD was formed.

"Due to the time required to approve the CFD, some of the deadlines established in the MOU may not be met," Feldman wrote.

Mayor Pro Tem Lou La Monte previously said the city shouldn't have to shoulder the cost of the sewer design plans alone.

“We’re doing everything we are supposed to do. We can’t take half our reserve and invest it in this project, unless we know there is money coming back to us,” La Monte said.

Malibu Patch will have more on this story at next week's council meeting.