[Adopted 7-14-2004]
A.
Pursuant to Chapter 105A of the Connecticut General
Statutes, as the sections contained therein may be amended or recodified
from time to time, there is hereby established a special services
district to be known as the "West Hartford Center Special Services
District." The purpose of the West Hartford Center Special Services
District shall be to promote the economic and general welfare of the
citizens and property owners of West Hartford both within and without
such district through the preservation, enhancement, protection and
development of the economic health and vitality of West Hartford Center.
B.
The boundaries of the West Hartford Center Special
Services District are hereby established as shown on the map entitled
"BBS Special Services District" and dated May 3, 2004, which map is
attached to and is hereby made a part of this article[1] and shall be recorded upon the land records of the Town of West Hartford. Should any question arise as to the precise location of the boundaries of the district, the principles set forth in West Hartford Code of Ordinances § 177-5 shall be applied to aid in making such determination.
[1]
Editor's Note: Said map is on file in the
Town offices.
C.
In order to provide that different land use categories within the district share equitably in the finding of the district in proportion to the different benefits to be derived therefrom, there are hereby established within the district the following categories of land use (each a "land use category"): municipal land use, commercial land use or residential land use. All real estate within the district shall be classified within one of these land use categories in accord with the definitions of those classifications set forth in § 161-23 of this article.
The following words, terms and phrases, as used
in this article, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this
section, except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning:
With respect to building area within a land use category
or subcategory thereof, any area for which all legal preconditions
to the application for a building permit have been satisfied.
For each fiscal year shall be the assessed value of the applicable
real estate shown on the grand list of the Town of West Hartford effective
on October 1 of the prior year.
The ordinance, entitled "An Ordinance Making Appropriations
Aggregating $48,821,543 for Town Projects and Public Improvements
Related to the Blue Back Square Project and Authorizing the Issuance
of $48,821,543 Bonds of the Town to Meet Said Appropriations and Pending
the Issuance Thereof the Making of Temporary Borrowings for Such Purposes
and Declaring the Town's Official Intent to Reimburse Expenditures
from Such Borrowings," adopted by the Town Council of West Hartford
on _______, 2004
The Board of Commissioners established pursuant to § 161-27 of this article.
Refers to any property other than a municipal land use or
a residential land use. Solely for purposes of implementing the levy
established pursuant to this article, commercial land uses shall be
divided into two subcategories: office land use and retail land use.
Any member of the Board of Commissioners.
Any area within a building which is available to more than
one owner, tenant, occupant or patron of said building for their common
use, including but not limited to hallways, lobbies, storage areas
and loading docks.
The West Hartford Center Special Services District described in § 161-22 of this article.
The fiscal year of the district as established in § 161-28A.
As the context indicates, one or more of the categories of
land use constituting commercial land use, municipal land use or residential
land use or to any specified subcategory thereof.
A property owner, as defined herein.
Refers to any property owned by the district or that portion
of any property which is categorized by the Director of Assessments,
for property tax purposes, as municipal property exempt from taxation
pursuant to C.G.S. § 12-81(4), as that section may be amended
or recodified from time to time.
A subcategory of commercial land use and shall refer to any
property which is categorized by the Director of Assessments, for
property tax purposes, as any type or category of office use. For
purposes of this article, a physical therapy, exercise and/or rehabilitation
facility associated or affiliated with medical offices or with a hospital
shall be classified as an office land use.
Real property within the district which is identified in
the tax records of the Town of West Hartford as a parcel of land and/or
building, or which constitutes an individual condominium unit, planned
community unit or separately taxable common element as shown on the
records of the Town's Director of Assessments.
The individual, corporation, partnership, limited-liability
company, unincorporated association, trustee, fiduciary, guardian,
conservator, or other legal entity or any combination thereof in whose
name(s) the title to a taxable interest in real estate stands on the
land records of the Town.
Refers to those areas and objects within the boundaries of
the district which are owned, administered, managed or operated by
the district and which are available to the public for recreational
or other public purposes or located within street rights-of-way, including
but not limited to public parking facilities, parks, playgrounds,
squares, plazas, decorative improvements, retaining walls, flagpoles,
fences, fountains, sidewalks, streetlights, sprinklers, trees, gardens,
landscaping, street amenities, benches and similar features.
Refers to that property constituting real estate for purposes of the compilation of the grand list of the Town as set out in C.G.S. § 12-64, and located within the boundaries of the district as established pursuant to § 161-22 of this article, as those boundaries may be amended from time to time in accord with the procedures set forth in § 161-26 of this article or, following the dissolution of the district, as located within the boundaries of the district at its dissolution.
Refers to that portion of any property which is categorized
by the Director of Assessments, for property tax purposes, as any
category of residential use.
A subcategory of commercial land use and shall refer to any
property which is categorized by the Director of Assessments, for
property tax purposes, as any taxable classification other than residential,
office or municipal.
Refers to an interest in real estate which is not exempt
from property taxes levied by the Town pursuant to the provisions
of the Connecticut General Statutes; is not being constructed or reconstructed
pursuant to a contract with the Town obligating the Town to acquire
such real estate; and which is newly-constructed, reconstructed or
under construction following the effective date hereof. For purposes
of the levy to be implemented pursuant to this article, all areas
within a building and which constitute a subcategory of the commercial
land use category or which constitute a residential land use shall
be deemed taxable interests in real estate within such respective
land use category or land use subcategory upon the issuance of a certificate
of occupancy or temporary certificate of occupancy by the Building
Official of the Town of West Hartford for any area of the building
approved for use within that same land use category or land use category
subcategory. Thereafter all such areas shall remain taxable interests
in real estate regardless of occupancy.
A.
Pursuant to C.G.S. § 7-339n, as that section
may be amended or recodified from time to time, the West Hartford
Center Special Services District shall constitute a body politic and
corporate and shall have the following powers:
(1)
To sue and be sued;
(2)
To acquire, hold and convey any estate, real or personal;
(3)
To contract;
(4)
To borrow money, provided any obligation incurred
for this purpose shall be discharged not more than one year after
it was incurred, and the district may pledge any revenues to be received
pursuant to C.G.S. § 7-339r, as that section may be amended
or recodified from time to time, against any such obligation;
(5)
To recommend to the Town Council of West Hartford
the imposition of a levy upon all taxable interests in real estate
within the district, the revenues from which may be used in carrying
out any of the powers of the district;
(6)
To construct, own, operate, administer and maintain
such public improvements as the Town may license to the district by
contract from time to time, including, without limitation, the authority
to administer, regulate and charge fees for the nonmunicipal use of
those public street rights-of-way now or hereinafter acquired by the
Town of West Hartford which are located within the district notwithstanding
any other provisions in this Code of Ordinances to the contrary;
(7)
To provide, within the district, some or all of the
other services which the Town of West Hartford is authorized to provide
therein;
(8)
To construct, acquire, or obtain leasehold interests
in motor vehicle parking facilities, within the district;
(9)
To operate a motor vehicle parking facility or facilities
within the district;
(10)
To lease or sublease to other parties motor
vehicle parking facilities;
(11)
To enter into, fund and perform agreements which
reduce the cost of motor vehicle parking to residents of the district
and to employees of, and those doing business with, businesses located
within the district.
B.
Commencing with the fiscal year following the fiscal
year in which the final maturity date occurs for the series of bonds
last to mature issued by the Town pursuant to the Blue Back Square
Public Improvements Bond Ordinance, the powers of the district shall
be exercised only to the extent which is reasonably necessary to maintain,
repair, replenish or refurbish, or to replace substantially in kind
(which terms shall be construed to exclude street plowing and/or street
repairs or reconstruction to the level of service otherwise generally
provided elsewhere by the Town, but shall be construed to include
the cost of public safety services directly allocable to proper management
of the public improvements), the public improvements then in existence
within the district, exclusive of any parking garage structures contained
therein or appurtenances thereto, and the levy recommended by the
Board shall be limited to such amount as is required to exercise those
limited powers.
The provisions of this article shall take effect
upon the 10th day following the approval of the establishment of the
district at a referendum held in accord with the provisions of this
section.
A.
The referendum shall be held among all holders of
record of taxable interests in real property in the district on the
question of whether this article shall take effect. The Town Clerk
shall determine the identity of such holders in the West Hartford
land records and shall give notice of the referendum to such holders.
B.
The referendum question shall appear on a ballot created
by the Town Clerk. Each ballot shall be accompanied by a copy of the
ordinance from which this article is derived and a letter explaining
how the ballot is to be cast and identifying the date and time by
which the completed ballot must be received by the Town Clerk. Each
ballot shall be signed by the property owner or the duly authorized
representative of said owner. The signature of any person signing
a ballot in his/her capacity as the duly authorized representative
of any owner shall also attest to his/her authority to sign said ballot
under penalties of false statement.
C.
In addition to the referendum question, the ballot shall contain an identification of each property owned by the property owner within the district, the assessed value of said property as shown in the Town's Grand List as of the first day of October last preceding preparation of the ballot and the allocation of such assessed value to each of the land use categories established in § 161-22C. The Town Clerk shall prepare and shall post in the Town Clerk's office, prior to the mailing of said ballots, a list of the property owners within the district, the assessed value of each property located within the district and the allocation of such assessed value to each of the land use categories established in § 161-22C.
D.
The ballot shall be mailed by certified mail to the
address used by the Town's Director of Assessments for tax purposes
not later than 35 days following adoption of this article. The ballots
must be returned to the Town Clerk not later than 4:30 p.m. on the
21st day after the initial mailing.
E.
Each property owner shall be entitled to cast one
ballot for each property which they own within the district, which
will be so counted in determining whether the necessary majority of
property owners have voted in favor of the creation of the proposed
district. For the purposes of this section:
(1)
Any tenant in common of any freehold interest in property
shall have a vote equal to his/her fractional ownership interest therein.
(2)
All joint tenants of any freehold interest in property
shall have a vote representing an equal fractional ownership interest
therein.
(3)
A corporation shall have its vote cast by the chief
executive officer of such corporation or his/her designee.
(4)
A limited partnership, limited liability company or
other similar legal entity which is authorized at law to take legal
action in its own name shall have its vote cast by an authorized agent
thereof, whose authority to vote shall be noted on the ballot executed
on behalf of the entity in question.
(5)
No property owner shall have more than one vote for
each property owned.
(6)
Any property owner may authorize an agent to vote
on his/her behalf, by executing an affidavit evidencing such authorization.
A copy of any such affidavit shall be appended to the ballot which
is executed by the authorized agent and delivered to the Town Clerk.
F.
The Town Clerk shall supervise the referendum and shall certify the results of the referendum. The referendum shall comply, to the extent applicable and practicable, with Chapter 145 (Absentee Voting) and Chapter 152 (Referenda) of the Connecticut General Statutes, except as Chapter 105A of the Connecticut General Statutes and the terms of this article may otherwise permit or direct.
G.
The referendum shall be approved if a majority of
the property owners within each of the commercial and residential
land use categories shall respond affirmatively and further provided
that property owners in each such land use category the assessments
of which shall constitute more than one-half of the total of assessments
for all taxable interests within each such land use category shall
respond affirmatively.
H.
No ordinance amending or repealing the provisions of this article shall be effective unless approved by the property owners within each of the commercial and residential land use categories by referendum conducted, and the outcome determined, in the same manner as the referendum establishing the district described in this § 161-25.
A.
Any property owner whose real property has at least
one boundary adjoining one of the boundaries of the district, notwithstanding
the intervention of a street, may request that such real property
be incorporated into the district. Such owner shall make such request
to the Board of Commissioners and to all original property owners
who are still property owners at the time of such request, in writing
by certified mail, return receipt requested, which request shall be
delivered to the address of each such original property owner on file
with the Board. This request must be signed by the property owner
or owners having greater than fifty-percent interest in said property,
or a representative of such owner(s) authorized to sign such a request.
All such requests shall be granted unless any original property owner
who is still a property owner at the time of such request notifies
the Board of Commissioners of his/her opposition to such request within
30 days following the receipt of said notice.
B.
The Board of Commissioners shall notify the Director
of Assessments and the Town of additions to the district and record
a copy of the written notification in the land records of the Town.
The levy imposed on a property incorporated into the district after
its inception shall be at the same rate as that imposed upon all other
property in the district, but shall be prorated to cover the period
from the date upon which such request is granted to the end of the
fiscal year.
A.
There shall be established a Board of Commissioners
consisting of 11 members. In addition, the Town Manager and the Director
of Financial Services for the Town of West Hartford shall sit as ex
officio nonvoting members of the Board. The voting members shall be
elected in the following manner:
(1)
Following the Town elections held pursuant to West
Hartford Charter, Chapter II, § 2, the individuals elected
to the Town Council shall serve as members of the Board of Commissioners
representing the municipal land uses within the district for terms
coterminous with their elective terms as members of the Town Council.
The individuals holding those offices upon the effective date of this
article shall serve as members of the Board of Commissioners for the
remainder of their current elective terms as members of the Town Council.
(2)
Within 30 days following the referendum creating the district, the Town Clerk shall call a general meeting of the members to elect those members of the Board of Commissioners who remain to be elected in accordance with Subsection A(3)(a) and (b) of this section. Said general meeting shall be warned as provided in § 161-27H(3). Said election shall be held in the manner described in Subsection A(4) of this section. The Board of Commissioners shall meet within 20 business days following the general meeting to elect officers and to establish schedules for subsequent meetings and for adopting bylaws for the district, said bylaws to be adopted within 60 days of the first meeting of the Board.
(3)
Two additional members of the Board of Commissioners
and two alternate members shall be elected as follows:
(a)
One member of the Board of Commissioners and
one alternate member shall be property owners whose property constitutes
a commercial land use for purposes of this article.
(b)
One member of the Board of Commissioners and
one alternate member shall be property owners whose property constitutes
a residential land use for purposes of this article.
(c)
If no property in the district falls into any one or more of the categories set forth in § 161-27A(3)(a) or (b), the member and alternate member to be elected to represent property owners of such category shall not be elected and the positions of those representative members and alternate members shall remain vacant until such time as property within that category is occupied in the district.
(d)
If all property located in the district which falls into any one or more of the categories set forth in § 161-27A(3)(a) or (b) should cease to be occupied, or be reclassified such that no property remains within the district in said land use category, the term of the member elected to represent said eliminated land use category of property shall terminate immediately and the position of that representative member and alternate member shall remain vacant until such time as property within that land use category is reoccupied or reestablished in the district.
(4)
Following the initial election of members to the Board of Commissioners described in Subsection A, the members of the Board of Commissioners to be elected pursuant to Subsection A(3) of this section shall be elected by a plurality vote of members present and voting at a general meeting to be held in January of each even-numbered year. Nominations for candidates for elections to the Board of Commissioners shall be made at the time of the general meeting. Each owner of property including a commercial land use shall be entitled to cast one vote for the member to be elected pursuant to Subsection A(3)(a) of this section. Each owner of property including a residential land use shall be entitled to cast one vote for the member to be elected pursuant to Subsection A(3)(b) of this section. The candidate in each category described in Subsection A(3)(a) and (b) receiving the highest total vote count shall be elected as a Commissioner. The candidate with the second highest vote count in each category shall be elected alternate or, if there is no such candidate, the Commissioner elected to represent such category shall promptly appoint an alternate Commissioner from among the other members within the respective category.
B.
The Board of Commissioners shall be the executive
body governing the day-to-day operations of the district. A quorum
of the Board shall consist of six voting members, and actions of the
Board shall be taken by a majority vote of those present and voting
at any meeting where a quorum is present. The Board shall make administrative
decisions and establish or interpret policies of the district which
are consistent with the purpose, intent and powers of the district.
The Board may designate such agents, including a district manager
and a district clerk, as it deems necessary and advisable to act on
its behalf in the conduct of the business of the Board.
C.
The term of each Commissioner and alternate Commissioner elected to represent the commercial or residential land use categories shall commence on the date of the general meeting of the members to elect said members of the Board of Commissioners. Each Commissioner and alternate Commissioner shall continue to serve respectively as a member of the Board of Commissioners or alternate Commissioner until a successor is elected and qualified or until such office is terminated in accordance with the provisions of § 161-27A(3)(d).
D.
If any Commissioner elected to represent the commercial
or residential land use categories shall for any reason (including,
without limitation, such Commissioner ceasing to be a property owner
within said land use category) cease to serve as such prior to the
end of such Commissioner's current term, the alternate Commissioner
representing that land use category shall fill the remainder of such
term. If any alternate Commissioner elected to represent the commercial
or residential land use categories shall for any reason cease to serve
as such prior to the end of such alternate Commissioner's current
term (including, but not limited to, the appointment of the alternate
Commissioner to fill a vacancy), the Commissioner then representing
that land use category shall appoint a new alternate Commissioner
of the Board from among the members of that land use category. If
a vacancy occurs among the Commissioners elected to represent the
municipal land use category, such Commissioner shall be replaced by
the individual appointed to fill the terms of the same Council office
as was held by the departing Commissioner. If a Commissioner representing
the commercial or residential land use categories is absent from a
meeting of the Board of Commissioners, their respective alternate
Commissioners may act at said meeting in the stead of their respective
Commissioner.
E.
The Board of Commissioners may hire such staff or
consultants considered necessary to perform the duties and carry out
the obligations of the district as approved in the annual budget and
may contract with the Town of West Hartford to provide such services
as it deems advisable.
F.
The Board of Commissioners shall elect officers, the
positions to be determined at the first business meeting of the Board
after the district is created and incorporated into the bylaws when
written.
G.
No Commissioner shall receive any compensation for
service as such, but may be reimbursed for reasonable expenses incurred
on behalf of the district as determined and approved by the Board.
H.
Meetings.
(1)
The Board of Commissioners shall establish a regular
schedule of meetings and provide notice of its regular meetings, including
dates, times, and places for said meetings in accord with the provisions
of the Freedom of Information Act, Connecticut General Statutes Chapter
14, as that Act may be amended or recodified from time to time (the
"FOIA").
(2)
The Board of Commissioners may call special meetings
from time to time as necessary to conduct the business of the district.
The Board of Commissioners shall provide notice of the special meeting
setting forth the date, time, place and subject matter of the meeting
in accordance with the FOIA.
(3)
There shall be at least one annual general meeting
of members to review the activities of the district and to conduct
district elections when appropriate. Said meeting shall be held on
the first Tuesday following the first Monday in January, provided
that if such day falls upon a holiday, such meeting shall be held
on the next Tuesday thereafter. The Town Clerk shall warn the general
meeting of members by publishing a notice thereof in a newspaper having
a general circulation in the Town not less than 10 days prior to the
date of said meeting. Said meeting shall be conducted in conformance
with the provisions of Robert's Rules of Order.
A.
The fiscal year of the district shall begin on the
first day of July and shall end on the last day of June of each calendar
year. The first fiscal year of the district shall commence on July
1, 2005.
B.
The Board of Commissioners shall prepare and adopt the first annual budget from the district on or before April 15, 2005, and annually thereafter. The budget shall include proposed expenditures, revenues and a recommended tax levy for the district. The procedures set forth in Subsection C of this section shall not apply to the adoption of the first annual budget, but said procedures shall serve to guide the Board of Commissioners in the process which it establishes for the adoption of the first annual budget.
C.
Budget procedures.
(1)
Not later than 130 days before the end of the fiscal
year, the Town shall provide the Board of Commissioners a statement
detailing the square footage of gross building area allocated to the
residential land use category, each of the subcategories within the
commercial land use category and of each taxable interest in real
estate classified within each of those land use categories or subcategories.
(2)
Not later than 110 days before the end of the fiscal
year, the Board of Commissioners shall compile and shall file with
the Town Clerk detailed preliminary estimates of the expenditures
to be made by the district; the estimated revenue, other than levy
revenues, to be collected by the district in the ensuing fiscal year;
and the estimated levy on each land use category or subcategory thereof
to be recommended by the Board.
(3)
The Board of Commissioners shall schedule and hold
one or more public hearings, the first of which shall take place not
later than 75 days before the end of the fiscal year, on the proposed
annual budget for the district for the ensuing fiscal year. The Town
Clerk shall publish notice thereof in a newspaper having a general
circulation in the Town not less than 10 days prior to the date of
the first of said hearings. At said hearings any member shall have
an opportunity to be heard regarding appropriations for the ensuing
fiscal year.
(4)
Not later than 65 days before the end of the fiscal
year, the Board of Commissioners shall, by resolution, adopt a budget
for the ensuing fiscal year, including its recommended levy upon all
taxable interests in real estate constituting residential land uses
or commercial land uses (by subcategory) within the district as necessary
to support the district's budget, and file the same with the Town
Clerk not later than 45 days before the end of the fiscal year. Under
no circumstances shall the budgeted expenditures of the district for
any fiscal year be permitted to exceed budgeted revenues.
(5)
Expenditures in any fiscal year shall be made in accordance
with the budget so adopted, or as amended by the Board of Commissioners
from time to time. Should the Board of Commissioners fail to adopt
a budget as hereinabove set forth, the most recently adopted budget
shall remain in effect for the ensuing fiscal year(s) until such may
be amended by the Board of Commissioners pursuant to the procedures
set forth in this subsection for the adoption of an annual budget.
D.
Except as otherwise provided in this section, the
recommended levy established by the Board for any fiscal year shall
not exceed $1,714,000 and shall be subject to the further limitations
that:
(1)
The aggregate tax levy on all taxable interests in
real estate constituting commercial land uses shall not exceed $1,554,000,
and the tax levy with respect to each individual taxable interest
in real estate constituting a commercial land use shall not exceed
$3.45 per square foot of gross building area ($1,554,000 total square
footage of commercial land use initially contemplated in approved
plans, rounded to the nearest $0.05); and
(2)
The aggregate tax levy on all taxable interests in
real estate constituting residential land uses shall not exceed $160,000,
and the tax levy with respect to each individual taxable interest
in real estate constituting a residential land use shall not exceed
$1 per square foot of gross building area.
E.
The limitations imposed upon the recommended levy pursuant to Subsection D hereof shall be subject to adjustment under any of the following circumstances, any or all of which may be applied cumulatively:
(1)
If the district is expanded in accord with the terms of § 161-26, in which case the maximum recommended levy shall be increased by an amount equal to $3.45 per square foot of additional gross building area approved as commercial land uses and/or $1 per square foot of gross building area approved as residential land uses; or
(2)
Commencing with the 30th month following the imposition of the first levy upon a taxable interest in real estate, at which time the maximum recommended levy upon commercial land uses shall be increased by an amount equal to the combination of any shortfall between the actual levy on existing residential land uses within the district and $160,000; and any shortfall between the actual levy on existing commercial land uses within the district and $1,554,000, which increase shall be allocated between the various commercial land uses then in existence on an equal per-square-foot basis, but shall not cause the aggregate tax levy on all taxable interests in real estate to exceed $1,714,000 except where applied cumulatively with the increase permitted pursuant to Subsection E(1) of this section.
F.
All recommended levies shall be allocated between the various land use categories based upon the 3.45 to 1 ratio described hereinabove as said ratio may have been adjusted over time pursuant to Subsection E of this section. Municipal land uses and other land uses exempt from property taxation pursuant to any applicable provision of law shall not be subject to any levy imposed by the Town on behalf of the district. Notwithstanding any other provision hereof to the contrary, any taxable interest in real estate established or created during a fiscal year, whether through new construction, division of a taxable interest in real estate into multiple parts or through any other mechanism whatsoever shall become subject to levy pursuant to this article commencing with the calendar month in which that taxable interest in real estate is established or created, and the levy for any such taxable interest in real estate shall be prorated on a monthly basis during said fiscal year. Any common area within a building which serves more than one land use category shall be classified as belonging to that land use category or subcategory which otherwise occupies the greatest portion of the floor area on the floor upon which said common area is located.
G.
The levy on the taxable interests in real estate in
the district shall be due and payable in two equal installments, due
on or before July 1 and January 1 in the same manner as property tax
bills of the Town. Each year the Tax Collector of the Town shall,
accordingly, provide property owners with statements detailing the
amount of their annual levy and the semiannual installment amounts.
Said statements may be provided with or incorporated into the property
tax bills of the Town. Delinquent charges shall be assessed on late
district tax payments and shall be computed in the same manner used
for establishing delinquent charges on property tax bills of the Town.
H.
The Town shall be obliged to impose the recommended
levy as a municipal levy and to collect the revenues accruing therefrom.
All moneys, including but not limited to levies or any income, proceeds
or fees issuing from the provision of services by the district or
other business conducted by the district, received by the Board or
by the Town on behalf of the district shall be paid into the general
fund of the Town, where an account shall be maintained of such moneys
for the benefit of the district. The Treasurer of the Town shall disburse
such moneys in accordance with an annual budget adopted by the Board.
The Treasurer of the Town shall disburse finds from the account to
the district upon written request of a duly authorized representative
of the district, and only upon such request in accordance with the
then current approved annual budget of the Board of Commissioners
of the district. The district shall set forth in its bylaws the procedures
for approving disbursement of funds and requesting disbursement from
the Treasurer.
I.
All orders or contracts for expenditures by the Board
of Commissioners or its agents on behalf of the district which are
greater than $5,000 shall be awarded to the lowest responsible qualified
bidder only after a public invitation to bid, which shall be advertised
in a newspaper having circulation in the district.
J.
An annual financial report of all district revenues
and expenditures shall be submitted to the Board of Commissioners
and the Town Clerk within 60 days following the end of each fiscal
year. Such report shall include, but shall not be limited to, a listing
of major disbursements and sources of receipts by the district.
K.
The Board of Commissioners shall have an independent
financial audit of the district's financial affairs conducted by a
certified public accountant within 180 days of the end of the fiscal
year. Said audit shall be performed in accordance with the provisions
of Connecticut General Statutes Chapter 111 (the Municipal Auditing
Act) as that chapter may be amended or recodified from time to time.
A copy of the audit shall be forwarded to the Finance Director of
the Town and the Town Clerk. Said audit may be conducted in conjunction
with an independent audit of the Town's financial affairs.
The Town may enter into a contract with the district pursuant to C.G.S. § 7-339t in which the Town is excused from providing to the district some or all of the services which the district is authorized to provide pursuant to this article and in which the district agrees to provide all such services from which the Town has been excused. The Town and the district may also enter into contracts pursuant to C.G.S. § 7-339t in which the district is given the right to elect to purchase from the Town some or all of the services for which the district has become responsible. Any contracts executed pursuant to this section shall not be subject to the requirements of § 161-28I.
A.
The district may be dissolved by an ordinance repealing this article or after a referendum is conducted by the Board of Commissioners among all property owners within the district on the question of whether the district shall be dissolved, in which event, such referendum shall be conducted, and the outcome determined, in the same manner as the referendum establishing the district described in § 161-25.
B.
In the event the district is dissolved, the Board
of Commissioners shall proceed to wind up the affairs of the district
as of the end of the current fiscal year. If, after dissolution of
the district there are outstanding liabilities or obligations, whether
fixed or contingent, the Town Council may impose, in addition to the
regular municipal levy, a levy on the taxable interests in real estate
within such district pursuant to § 7-339s of Chapter 105A
of the Connecticut General Statutes for as many years as such liabilities
remain outstanding. For purposes of this section, the obligations
of the district pursuant to any municipal service agreements, contracts
or other agreements between the district and the Town of West Hartford
shall be deemed to be outstanding liabilities or obligations and the
Town Council may impose such an additional levy as is necessary to
fulfill the obligations of the district to the Town pursuant to any
such agreements for the remainder of their original term(s). Any levy
imposed by the Town Council pursuant to this subsection shall be calculated
to produce enough revenues to satisfy and release all liabilities
and/or obligations of the district as they become due but shall otherwise
be subject to any limitations set forth in this article. The revenue
collected shall be deposited into the general fund of the Town and
disbursed solely for the purposes stated herein. If, after dissolution
of the district, there are assets which remain following the winding
up of the affairs of the district, such assets shall be transferred
to the Town.
All interests in real property held and all
personal property owned by the district shall not be subject to any
property tax levied by the Town.
