LMD Assessment Election
LMD ASSESSMENT ELECTION
The City of Clovis is holding an election that will determine the resources available for landscape maintenance in certain parks across Clovis. If you received a ballot, this means that your property is located in a zone that will be affected by this election.
Below, you will find information about the election process, which zones are affected and how, what the outcome of the election will mean, and how you can participate.
The City of Clovis Landscape Maintenance District (“LMD”) encompasses 50 Benefit Zones, which provide funding for the maintenance of parks and trails for recreational use, roadside and median landscaping for City beautification, trail and park lighting for safety, and in-tract landscaping for neighborhood beautification. The properties within each Benefit Zone are assessed annually on property tax bills to collect the funding for the maintenance of these enhancements. This funding is essential for routine maintenance and replacement of these amenities. The LMD plays a vital role in keeping our community attractive and safe, and in providing recreational opportunities for property owners and residents.
Some Benefit Zones include an annual escalator, which allows the assessment to go up automatically by the published Consumer Price Index (CPI) each year. Other Benefit Zones do not have an annual escalator and their assessment increases must be approved through a property owner election called a Proposition 218 election. Assessment increases are calculated based on the revenue needed to keep up with increasing costs for maintenance and provide funding for improvements.
More information can be found in our Landscape Maintenance District No. 1 Engineer’s Report here.
Notices and Ballots are mailed to the owners of properties located within the Benefit Zone(s) for which an election is being held. If a majority of returned ballots do not oppose the proposed assessment increase, the assessment increase may be implemented for the upcoming fiscal year.
Proposition 218 proceedings are currently underway for Benefit Zones 4 and 5. Both Zones 4 and 5 fund maintenance of neighborhood parks. Neither of these Benefit Zones have an annual assessment escalator, so a Proposition 218 election is necessary to approve increases needed to keep up with increasing costs for maintenance and provide funding for improvements. Which ballot a property owner receives will depend on which LMD Zone your property was annexed into at the time of development.
For the notice sent to property owners that pay a Benefit Zone 4 assessment, click here.
For the notice sent to property owners that pay a Benefit Zone 5 assessment, click here.
A “yes” vote means that you approve of the assessment increase for your Benefit Zone to provide funding for the maintenance of parks in your Benefit Zone.
A “no” vote means that you do not approve of the assessment increase, and maintenance services in your Benefit Zone may be cut back to align maintenance costs with available funding. Without proper maintenance, some of the landscaping may deteriorate, and park amenities will become more costly to replace in the future or may not be able to be replaced at all.
Notices and ballots will be mailed to affected property owners by May 1, 2025. A public hearing on the election will be held at the Clovis City Council meeting on June 16, 2025, which is the deadline to return ballots. Signed and sealed ballots can be mailed to the attention of the City Clerk and must be received by 5:00 PM on June 16, 2025. They can also be hand-delivered at the public hearing prior to the close of the public input portion for the Proposition 218 election. Postage-paid return envelopes will be included with the ballots.
Written comments may be submitted to the Clovis City Council any time prior to the end of the public hearing on June 16, 2025. Verbal comments may also be provided at that hearing. The public hearing will be held at the Clovis City Council Chambers (1033 Fifth Street, Clovis, CA 93612) at 6:00 PM.
Please contact the City’s Parks Manager, Tim Breshears, at (559) 324-2600.
LMD Zone 4
LMD Zone 5
Proposed Assessment Increase for Landscape Maintenance District No. 1 (Benefit Zone 4)
City of Clovis Landscape Maintenance District No. 1 (“LMD”) was established in 1985 to play a vital role in our communities by providing for the maintenance of our City’s roadway landscape, parks, and trails. The sustainability of the LMD is critical in helping to keep our neighborhoods attractive and safe.
The services funded through the LMD provide for healthy and well-maintained neighborhood and City landscape, parks, and trail improvements. Routine landscape maintenance along City public roadways, parks, and trails – such as mowing, weed abatement, trash, and debris pick-up – keep our neighborhoods properly maintained while increasing safety and plant health during years of drought. Properly maintained parks and trails improve recreational opportunities for property owners and residents.
Due to the varying degrees of public landscape and location of park and trail improvements, the City has created “Benefit Zones” within the LMD. Each Benefit Zone consists of territory which receives substantially the same degree of benefit from parks, landscape, and trail improvements.
LMD assessments are paid annually by property owners on property tax bills at the same time and in the same manner as other property taxes. If you received a notice in the mail, your property is located within the boundaries of LMD Benefit Zone 4.
Benefit Zone 4 provides funding for the maintenance of neighborhood parks in the general area north of Herndon Avenue to Shepherd Avenue, between Willow Avenue and SR-168. The assessment rates for Benefit Zone 4 have not increased since 2016, which has resulted in annual landscape maintenance costs to increasingly exceed the assessment revenue. There have been no proposed increases since the 2016 election, and without either a rate increase or a decrease in services, reserves will be depleted in about 2 years.
The City is now asking property owners to approve an increase to their Benefit Zone 4 assessments to provide a high quality of service to your community while being fiscally responsible.
An increase in the annual assessment for Benefit Zone 4 is needed to maintain current service levels to properly maintain City parks. Without additional funding, further cutbacks in landscape maintenance will have to be made, in addition to postponing vital repairs and replacements. Without these repairs and replacements, certain amenities will become inaccessible and unsafe and removed from the parks.
While the cost of labor and materials have continued to increase over the years, the City has been able to limit the number of LMD assessment increases due to: (a) prudent use of available landscape maintenance funds by utilizing contract services, and (b) having reserves that accumulated in earlier years. However, the reserves have been depleted, yet the cost of materials and labor continue to rise.
All funds generated by your Benefit Zone 4 assessments are deposited into separate funds that, by law, can only be spent to maintain parks in your area of the City respectively.
Benefit Zone 4 is currently on a typical routine maintenance schedule. Currently, expenditures have exceeded annual assessments, which will lead to a depletion of reserves within 2 years if there is not either a rate increase or a decrease in services. General park conditions are aging, including irrigation controllers, park amenities, and playground structures.
A rate increase will allow the City to:
- Continue maintenance service levels at City standards.
- Repair or replace park amenities that are deteriorating and have reached the end of their useful life.
Assessments are proposed on all parcels that receive a direct and special benefit from the improvements within the LMD. The amount of each proposed assessment is calculated based upon the proportional special benefit received by each parcel to be assessed. Because there are varying degrees of landscape and park improvements throughout the City, the LMD has been divided into Benefit Zones. Maintenance of the landscape and park improvements benefitting each Benefit Zone are then shared among the parcels within the respective Benefit Zone. Annual assessment rates are based upon the following:
- All single-family residential parcels (single-family, condominium, etc.) are assessed on a per parcel basis.
- All multi-family residential parcels (apartments, duplex, etc.) are assessed on a per residential unit basis.
- All non-residential parcels (commercial, industrial, institutional, etc.) are assessed on a per acre basis.
The current Benefit Zone 4 annual assessment is $49.86 per year. The proposed Benefit Zone 4 annual assessment is $65.00 per year (an increase of $15.14 per year). The proposed rates also include an annual escalator based on the change in the Consumer Price Index (CPI), not to exceed 3%. The proposed annual assessments will be levied every fiscal year commencing with FY 2026-2027.
Proposed Assessment Increase for Landscape Maintenance District No. 1 (Benefit Zone 5)
City of Clovis Landscape Maintenance District No. 1 (“LMD”) was established in 1985 to play a vital role in our communities by providing for the maintenance of our City’s roadway landscape, parks, and trails. The sustainability of the LMD is critical in helping to keep our neighborhoods attractive and safe.
The services funded through the LMD provide for healthy and well-maintained neighborhood and City landscape, parks, and trail improvements. Routine landscape maintenance along City public roadways, parks, and trails – such as mowing, weed abatement, trash, and debris pick-up – keep our neighborhoods properly maintained while increasing safety and plant health during years of drought. Properly maintained parks and trails improve recreational opportunities for property owners and residents.
Due to the varying degrees of public landscape and location of park and trail improvements, the City has created “Benefit Zones” within the LMD. Each Benefit Zone consists of territory which receives substantially the same degree of benefit from parks, landscape, and trail improvements.
LMD assessments are paid annually by property owners on property tax bills at the same time and in the same manner as other property taxes. If you received a notice in the mail, your property is located within the boundaries of LMD Benefit Zone 5.
Benefit Zone 5 provides funding for the maintenance of neighborhood parks in the general area south of Herndon Avenue, between Sunnyside and Locan Avenues. The assessment rates for Benefit Zone 5 have not increased since 2013, which has resulted in annual landscape maintenance costs to increasingly exceed the assessment revenue. Also, some park playground amenities and structures associated with Benefit Zone 5 have deteriorated due to use and age and need to be replaced or the amenity will be removed. In 2016 and again in 2022, the City mailed notices and ballots to property owners in Benefit Zone 5 regarding approval of an assessment increase to address the funding shortfalls. Twice, a majority of returned ballots opposed the assessment increase and the City has been forced to significantly reduce levels of service, as a result of insufficient funding. Unless an increase is approved, maintenance will be reduced even more.
The City is now asking property owners to approve an increase to their Benefit Zone 5 assessments to provide a high quality of service to your community while being fiscally responsible.
An increase in the annual assessment for Benefit Zone 5 is needed to restore service levels to properly maintain City parks. Without additional funding, further cutbacks in landscape maintenance will have to be made, in addition to postponing vital repairs and replacements. Without these repairs and replacements, certain amenities will become inaccessible and unsafe and removed from the parks.
While the cost of labor and materials have continued to increase over the years, the City has been able to limit the number of LMD assessment increases due to: (a) prudent use of available landscape maintenance funds by utilizing contract services, and (b) having reserves that accumulated in earlier years. However, the reserves have been depleted, yet the cost of materials and labor continue to rise.
All funds generated by your Benefit Zone 5 assessments are deposited into separate funds that, by law, can only be spent to maintain parks in your area of the City respectively.
Benefit Zone 5 is currently on a severely reduced maintenance schedule. Currently, expenditures have exceeded annual assessments and the fund balance is in a deficit. General park conditions are aging, including irrigation controllers, park amenities, and playground structures.
A rate increase will allow the City to:
- Restore maintenance service levels to City standards.
- Repair or replace park amenities that are deteriorating and have reached the end of their useful life.
Assessments are proposed on all parcels that receive a direct and special benefit from the improvements within the LMD. The amount of each proposed assessment is calculated based upon the proportional special benefit received by each parcel to be assessed. Because there are varying degrees of landscape and park improvements throughout the City, the LMD has been divided into Benefit Zones. Maintenance of the landscape and park improvements benefitting each Benefit Zone are then shared among the parcels within the respective Benefit Zone. Annual assessment rates are based upon the following:
- All single-family residential parcels (single-family, condominium, etc.) are assessed on a per parcel basis.
- All multi-family residential parcels (apartments, duplex, etc.) are assessed on a per residential unit basis.
- All non-residential parcels (commercial, industrial, institutional, etc.) are assessed on a per acre basis.
The current Benefit Zone 5 annual assessment is $50.10 per year. The proposed Benefit Zone 5 annual assessment is $65.00 per year (an increase of $14.90 per year). The proposed rates also include an annual escalator based on the change in the Consumer Price Index (CPI), not to exceed 3%. The proposed annual assessments will be levied every fiscal year commencing with FY 2026-2027.
Summary of Ballot Procedures
Enclosed with the Notice of Public Hearing is a ballot for Benefit Zone 4 or Benefit Zone 5, along with a self-addressed, postage-paid return envelope.
- The ballot must be completed by the property owner(s) or an authorized representative, indicating the property owner’s support for or opposition to the proposed annual assessment increases.
- For your ballot to be counted, you must clearly mark the appropriate box, sign the ballot, seal it in the enclosed envelope, and return it to the City Clerk of the City of Clovis either by mail or hand delivery.
- Completed ballots must be received at the address shown on the enclosed return envelope by 5:00 p.m. on June 16, 2025, or hand-delivered to the City Clerk before the end of the public input portion of the Public Hearing that same evening.
- The Public Hearing begins at 6:00 p.m. on June 16, 2025, at the City Council Chambers, 1033 Fifth Street, Clovis, CA.
- If you return the ballot by mail, be sure to allow sufficient time for mail delivery.
A Public Hearing will be held on June 16, 2025, in the Clovis City Council Chambers. City Council will receive public testimony and formally accept the ballots. The ballots will be counted at 8:00 am the following day at the City of Clovis Police and Fire Headquarters located at 1233 Fifth Street, Clovis, CA.
For each respective Benefit Zone, if a majority of the ballots returned oppose the proposed assessment increase, the proposed assessment increase cannot be approved, and the current assessment will continue to be imposed.
The results of the ballot tabulation are expected to be reported to City Council on July 7, 2025.
For questions about City maintenance services related to Benefit Zones 4 and 5, please call the City’s Parks Manager, Tim Breshears, at (559) 324-2600.
For questions about the assessments, voting procedures or process, please call the City’s Assessment Engineering Consultant, Ed Espinoza, at (925) 867-3400.