Study session set on metro districts

Discussion follows March 1 town hall

Loveland’s City Council will follow up on its March 1 town hall concerning metropolitan districts with a panel discussion involving experts in metro district law and finance Tuesday.

A metro district is a type of local government that collects property taxes to fund public improvements such as roads and parks. When established by developers, metro districts often are used to spread out the cost of paying for those projects, with revenue bonds backed by a mill levy funding construction.

City staffers collected the questions asked by citizens in March and grouped them into legal, financial and development-related categories. Many residents voiced concerns at the time about districts’ impact on tax rates and certain district structures that limit property owners’ role in governance.

Because Tuesday is a study session, and no vote is scheduled, the council won’t be taking public comment or additional questions, though comments and questions are still being taken online through www.letstalkloveland.org.

Experts scheduled to speak include:

• Brian Matise, attorney, Burg Simpson Eldredge Hersh & Jardine P.C.

• Matthew Gray, attorney, Sherman & Howard LLC.

• James Mann, senior municipal adviser/principal, Ehlers Inc.

• Michael Persichitte, financial adviser, RBC Capital Markets.

• Charles Wolfersberger, certified public accountant, Wolfersberger LLC.

• David Powell, Realtor, Kentwood Real Estate.

HOW TO PA8TICIPATE

Due to COVID-19 concerns, Tuesday’s City Council meeting is being held remotely via Zoom. The meeting will start at 6 p.m.

The meeting will be broadcast on Comcast Channel 16 and streamed through the city’s website at loveland.viebit.com.

The Zoom webinar will be accessible at zoom.us/j/97537796504?pwd=yufx NTLDDXVVZNPJSLG1DDEWK1Mrzz09.

Members of the public who want to listen in on the meeting via phone may call 669-

900-6833. When prompted, callers should enter the meeting identification number, 975 3779 6504, followed by the passcode, 829866, when prompted and press the # key when asked for a participant ID. Callers will be automatically muted and placed on hold.

Tuesday’s agenda packet can be viewed and printed at cilovelandco.civicweb.net/ Portal/meetinginformation.aspx?org=cal&id=943

CURIOUS ABOUT METRO DISTRICTS?

For more information about a specific metro district — including board members, election details and other public records — visit the Colorado Department of Local Affairs’ index of local governments at dola.colorado.gov/lgis/. Records of taxes paid by proper ties in Larimer County are available through the website of the county asses- sor’s office at www.larimer.org/assessor/search#/ property/. If a property is located within a metro dis- trict, the amount of property tax owed to the district is public record.

DOLA also offers an up-todate, statewide map of metro districts at demography.dola.colorado.gov/ Co_specialdistrict/.

To learn more about special district elections in Colorado, check out the department’s guide at cdola.colorado.gov/specialdistrict-elections.