Another day, another disaster caused by Aliso Viejo Mayor Carmen Cave and her City Council colleagues.
“Each year, owners of 458 other homes in the Glenwood development pay a special tax of $3,000 to $7,000 on top of their property taxes, based on the square footage of their home. That money pays for the Aliso Viejo Conference Center, Aquatic Center and Golf Drive, along with utility, street and sewer improvements,” according to the O.C. Register.
But wait – this mess is even bigger than you might think:
And the bill has been rising.
Each year, the Aliso Viejo City Council has approved a 2 percent levy increase, which it can continue to raise until the bond is paid off – currently due in 2038.
According to the city’s latest annual report, the bond will accrue $47.5 million in interest.
That means Glenwood taxpayers could pay as much as $81.6 million.
And what does the ridiculous Cave have to say about this?
“If they were not paying Mello-Roos, they would be going to the schools for free and using the streets for free that everybody else would have paid for on their behalf,” Mayor Carmen Cave said. “We discussed this extensively at the time we formed these districts.”
Amazing. Will the voters in Aliso Viejo remember this the next time Cave asks for their vote?
The three Mello-Roos districts in Aliso Viejo:
Capistrano Unified School District Community Facilities District No. 87-1: $71,810,000 issued in 2006; $45,905,000 outstanding
• Total assessed value of parcels in the district is $9.3 billion
• Will be paid off in 2020
Orange County Community Facilities District No. 88-1: $207,845,000 in bonds issued in 1994
• Total assessed value of parcels in the district is $6.8 billion
• Paid off in September
Aliso Viejo Community Facilities District No. 2005-1 (Glenwood): $34,070,000 in bonds issued in 2007; $34,030,000 outstanding
• Total assessed value of parcels in the district is $286million
• Will be paid off in 2038
Source: City of Aliso Viejo, California State Treasurer’s Office, County of Orange CEO
The voters should remember that Carmen Cave always runs with her cohort, Phil Tsunoda, who also voted for this tax. So in 2014, think of high taxes and a total disregard for the city’s citizens when you see Cave and Tsunoda for City Council.
The truth finally appears – there’s much more information if you contine to investigate.
Investigation of that city are in order.
Every the Aliso Viejo City Council is in the newspaper, it’s about some sleezy political dealings, or some way the politicians are putting one over on the public.
If the property was not within a Mello Roos district, the cost of building necessary infrastructure would have been added to the price of the homes and financed through the tax-deductible mortgage. With the Mello Roos, the home price is lower and the costs are paid through tax deductible property tax payments. The bonds issued to finance the infrastructure (and secured by future Mellow Roos payments) generally have a lower interest rate than mortgages do, so there is a net savings – albeit, a small one when all is said and done – to homeowners. Further, Mello Roos districts are used throughout the state – and particularly throughout the South County – so I don’t understand why Aliso Viejo and Carmen Cave have been singled out.
I think because the expenditures are highly questionable and the quality of the structures built with this money is sorely lacking.
Thanks for the technical speak, but the point of this article and the comments that seem to confuse you, Laer, is that Carmen Cave and her council have a long history of arrogance, assuming that the public is too stupid to make decisions on their own. The Glenwood residents have been the recipient of Cave’s disdain for many years, and have been lectured by Bill Phillips on what we should and should not have in our community. Take a look at the article in the OC Register, and read Cave’s comments to the homeowners. They say it all. Her position in this, and almost every other issue is either “tough luck” or “I’m smarter than you, so listen to me.” Perhaps that’s how she got fired by her city employer. Take a look at the expression on her face. If that look, combined with her sarcasm and condescension is all Aliso Viejo can expect from our our mayor, then it is indeed time for more change on the council.
Mellow Roos is not tax deductible.
The voters have learned that these people can’t be trusted.
The public has learned that the best was to combat an untrustworthy city council, is to show up, bring the issues to light, and question the decisions we don’t agree with. With Carmen Cave, we also have to wade through the political double talk and find our own answers.