Archive for the ‘Larimer County’ Category

Metro District – Follow-up to The Centerra Enigma

Wednesday, September 1st, 2010

We received an overwhelming response to our previous post “Centerra Enigma.” Mostly either in favor or against Metro Districts by email. However, Centerra’s funding involves sales taxes (called fees), property tax rebates, mill levies (Metro District) and lastly huge subsidies by the city through fee waivers. Therefore, we decided to create a new string for Metro Districts as the Centerra Enigma involves many other issues to which we object – not the fact they also have a Metro District.

Below is a typical email we receive from people living within residential Metro Districts both inside and outside Loveland. We don’t have the staff to research every complaint but it appears as though some people may have purchased their homes unaware that they would be paying higher property taxes for 20 years.

Here is one email –

” Hi,
I live in the Waterfront Metro Taxing district. Our taxes are double what the typical Loveland resident pays. Do you think any shenanigan’s went on with the city when this taxing district was formed. I know Fort Collins city council has been against creating them for residential subdivisions which is exactly what Loveland did.

Thanks”

If any of our well informed readers want to help answer this question please jump-in. We believe incompetence and simple bias resulted in Loveland’s previous “builder” council approving some Metro Districts that have become unpopular. Others, nearly identical ones, they also denied so the picture may be more complicated than what it appears.

Posted in City Council - General Issues, Larimer County, McWhinney, Uncategorized | 4 Comments »

Loveland Considers Law Suit Against Larimer County

Monday, June 8th, 2009

The Loveland City Council will be asked Tuesday night during a special meeting whether or not the city can go forward with a lawsuit staff is preparing against Larimer County. The discussion has been scheduled for the closed door portion of the meeting so the public will not be able to watch the discussion.

According to a source inside Loveland’s city hall, management has been asked to take action against the county to recover taxes and/or fees the city believes are owed for mitigation of the costs associated with the development of The Ranch (Larimer County Fairground Complex). According to the same sources, Loveland developer McWhinney has long complained the development should have paid more fees and was directing Loveland’s City Manager, Don Williams, to take more formal actions to enforce their agreement with the county.

So far, we have not heard the county’s side of the dispute. According to one attorney familiar with the issue it is largely a “technical” argument where the decision is not political or policy related but instead a difference on how the two sides interpret both the law and their agreements.

Curiously, Don Williams moved this item in the agenda from the June 2, 2009 meeting when the McWhinney’s request to have the council reduce their future CEF (Capital Expansion Fees) by 25% was also moved ahead to a special meeting. While there doesn’t appear to be any obvious connection between the two items (one agendized for public and the other private discussions) the City Manager has grouped them together. Perhaps, he wants to have McWhinney’s staff available when the lawsuit with the county is discussed so they can answer any questions that come up like – “why is the city doing this?”

Posted in Larimer County, Uncategorized | 2 Comments »