Maintenance Assessment District

The City provides the same level of service to all the communities. If the City increases the level of maintenance standard in one community then they will have to provide the same level to the rest of the communities. Although the City cannot afford the increase, they do allow communities to establish maintenance assessment districts to support the each community’s request for improvements.

Under the maintenance assessment district, our community receives the money the City is required to spend in our community. So our assessment is added to the existing maintenance funds.

• Enhanced maintenance and beautification of street medians, public right of ways (10ft in from the sidewalk), raw open space, canyons, parks, sidewalks, and any other projects we want to see in Del Cerro.
• The City establishes a line item in the city budget for Del Cerro, combining the current maintenance money designated for Del Cerro medians and open space from the city and the additional assessment amount.
• By law, the money in Del Cerro maintenance district line item in the city budget cannot be spent outside of Del Cerro (It is our money)
• The Del Cerro community has local control of the Del Cerro maintenance budget and projects.
• With the city and our assessment money, we are able to hire contractors (privatized city services). If they don’t perform to our standards, we can replace them.
• Get more Bang for the Buck through privatization – Example: Currently the city spends $4000 per acre to maintain parkland. With the same amount of money in a maintenance assessment district, we can double the quality of service for the same price. i.e. more mowing, more fertilizer, and care of the grass.

Sixty-three neighborhoods in the City of San Diego have established M.A.D. including Tierrasanta, Talmadge, Mira Mesa, and Scripps Ranch. Scripps Ranch, Tierrasanta, and Downtown are the oldest maintenance assessment districts in San Diego, established in 1971. Currently La Jolla is establishing a maintenance assessment district.

• Establish a Formation Committee (Friends of Del Cerro)
• Establish a preliminary boundaries and (Special Benefits) services
• Conduct a Community Survey
• Hold a Public Meeting
• Determine what added enhancements and beautification we want in Del Cerro
• Draft Feasibility Study
• City will conduct an Engineering Assessment Report to determine the cost of the special benefits per property owner
• Petition the community – Need 30 percent (850 signatures) of property owners (only one signature per property).
• Mail in Ballot. Property owners will have 54 days to mail in their ballots. Need 50% plus 1 of the voting property owners to vote in favor of the maintenance assessment district for approval.

Estimating $7.5 – $12 per month per property owner.

The City has money designated to pay for the Engineer Assessment report for three communities a year.

No, the city is responsible for the minimum standard of service which they are currently providing. If we as a community want to raise the standard, we must assess ourselves to provide the better service.

Background: Prior to the early 1970’s, the City had a program of landscaping street medians on major thoroughfares with plants that required a low level of maintenance to minimize the need to trim trees, fertilize and weed.

The City spends only 13 cents per square foot of median space, $4000 per acre for parks, and $25 per acre for open space each year per community. The city will not spend any more then the allocated amount to improve our community.

The State, County, and City need to either cut services or/and raise taxes. In any case, the beautification of the Del Cerro community will not improve. The difference between the State, County, and City and our assessment is every dollar we assess ourselves goes directly back into our community. We are investing in our community and our property. By law, the money cannot be spent outside our district.

Only projects identified in the Master Plan can be worked on. The Master Plan is voted on by the community. If down the road the community wants to expand the maintenance assessment district to include other projects, then it needs to go before the community for a vote again.

Yes, it can go up at the cost of inflation. However, the Del Cerro Maintenance Assessment District Committee has to vote on it. They can choose not to increase the assessment. Also, the committee cannot adjust the assessment to cost of living adjustment if there is a minimum of one year’s maintenance money in reserves.