| What Services Will a Limited District Provide? |
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**Comments in italics are solely the factual analyses by and opinions of the AMFuture candidates The LD will maintain and operate the parks. Additionally, while the LD may purchase necessary equipment to maintain, replace or upgrade park/pool amenities, it cannot acquire, purchase or lease additional or expand existing amenities. **For example, while the kiddie slide at El Salido pool could be replaced, a new wave pool could not be built and installed. City’s Level of Service If there is no LD, the City of Austin will provide the same level of service Anderson Mill is presently receiving according to the City of Austin Annexation Service Plan, March 20, 2008 “5b. Maintenance of Parks. Playgrounds, and Swimming Pools. Ownership and title to all parks and recreational facilities then owned by the Anderson Mill Limited District shall vest in the City. The City will maintain such parks as recreational facilities at their current levels of service described in the March 2008 Anderson Mill MUD Parks and Aquatics Department Level of Services document. Services may be provided by the City Parks and Recreation Department or by private service providers under contract with the City.” Park Awards On September 25, 2007, “[t]he City of Austin Parks and Recreation Department recently became the only major city in Texas and one of 73 cities nationwide that earned national accreditation from the Commission for Accreditation of Parks and Recreation Agencies. . . . To become accredited, agencies must demonstrate their ability to meet 36 fundamental standards and 85 percent of other standards. Austin Parks and Recreation met all fundamental standards and 97 percent of all other standards. This award marks the third national recognition for the City of Austin Parks and Recreation Department in the last five years. The Austin Parks and Recreation Department received the NRPA Gold Medal Award in 2004 recognizing the Austin Parks and Recreation system as the number one major metropolitan park system in the nation. In 2006 the National Recreation and Park Association awarded the City of Austin Parks and Recreation Aquatic Division the Excellence in Aquatics Award recognizing Austin as having the best Aquatic Division in the nation.” **In that the City will provide the same level of service and given its award-winning operation, it cannot reasonably be stated that the quality of the parks/pools would decline if the City takes over. The LD will maintain and operate the pools. Pool Fees Under the SPA, the LD may charge pool fees to Anderson Mill residents and non (city) residents. If there are no fees to residents, there are no fees to nonresidents. If there are fees, the fees to nonresidents cannot be more than the City summer pass rate. The LD may set a daily fee “for use of the Limited District’s pools at a uniform level for all residents of the City, including residents of the Limited District.” **Under this SPA provision, the LD cannot set pool fees in a manner to exclude non-Anderson Mill (city) residents from LD pools. As a result, for all practical purposes, the pool will be available to all residents, living inside or outside of Anderson Mill. This will be the case even without a LD. The Barracudas and the Westwood High School Swim Team Should the City of Austin operate the pools, the Barracudas, through the City’s aquatic program, and the WHS Swim Team, most likely through a contract between RRISD and the City similar to the present MUD/RRISD contract, will be able to continue swimming at the pools. The LD will provide security for the pools and parks. The security is strictly for pools and parks. MUD security costs in 2007 were over $86,000. The Austin Police Department will provide security for the whole of Anderson Mill. 911 will answer emergency calls. Austin police will be dispatched in response. The Austin police commander has expressed interest in using the present substation at Millwright Parkway as a police substation. ** AMFuture candidate Elizabeth Elleson proposed to city council using some of the $10 million reserve fund for capital projects like the substation. The council agreed. The LD will provide trash service. **It is unclear whether the LD will pay each customer’s bill or will offer the service and then bill the customer. The current contract with Allied Waste expires at the end of this year. Each time Allied has renewed or updated its contract, the MUD has approved a rate increase. **With Allied’s last request, the rate was increased, but your bill did not change. The MUD is subsidizing the balance of each bill. As a result, property taxes are being used to pay for trash. **The Tanglewood Limited District in south Austin provided pool/park/trash service at one time. It’s tax rate was $.3675/$100. In 2007, it dropped the trash service and the City of Austin provides it. Tanglewood’s tax rate is now at $.22/$100 for parks and pools. The LD will enforce deed restrictions. **As long as a LD would/will exist, the LD will manage deed restriction enforcement and the City of Austin will enforce City Code. Alternately, if there were to be no LD, only City Code will apply. Enforcement by the MUD Presently, the MUD contracts with Treasure of the Hill Senior Center (TOH) for deed restriction enforcement at approximately $1200 a month. TOH sends out a notice of violation to a property owner. ** Complaints about the TOH’s approach have been raised. The MUD board stated at its April 2008 meeting that it would look into this. Questions about TOH or the MUD legally entering a residential property to inspect for a deed restriction violation have come up also. If there is no compliance, the MUD may take the property owner to court. One recent court case cost the MUD over $100,000 in legal fees. The MUD board recently stated that it has not taken anyone to court. **A recent AMNA poll found a majority of residents thought that things in the neighborhood appeared the same as before the TOH enforcement. City Code Enforcement Many of the deed restrictions are similar, if not identical, to city code violations, for example, tall fences, tall weeds, debris, unsecured or dangerous buildings, and unscreened boats or recreational vehicles (RVs) in driveways. Anyone may call the city’s code enforcement hotline, 311, to report a suspected code violation or file a complaint through the city’s website. Calls/complaints may be anonymous. An investigator visits the site, confirms that there is a violation, and then may send a Notice of Violation to the property owner or issue a citation. If a property owner does not comply within set time limits, any of the following actions may be taken: • Hire contractors to clean property, secure dangerous buildings or demolish dangerous buildings. Property owners will be billed for the labor plus an administrative fee. • File criminal charges in municipal court. A conviction in criminal court carries fines of up to $2000 per violation. • Place liens on property for unpaid bills. • File a civil suit. • Present housing cases to the Building and Standards Commission. The commission may issue repair orders with fines attached or a demolition order for non-compliance. Code Enforcement works with APD District Representatives to address chronic problems. **Deed restrictions for each village are very few and have not much effect. Code enforcement may offer an effective (faster results) and efficient (moneywise) option for maintaining the quality of life in Anderson Mill. Next: Who Will Pay for the Limited District? And How? |