Ranch CDDs adopt budgets

LAKEWOOD RANCH — Residents in the Lakewood Ranch community will see slight increases to their community development district assessments for the 2013 fiscal year, due primarily to increases in costs for irrigation water.

Town Hall Financial Director Steve Zielinski said Lakewood Ranch Community Development Districts 1, 2 and 4 would have seen decreases in assessments, if irrigation provider Braden River Utilities had not planned significant rate increases. Only CDD 5 would have seen increases, regardless.

“Everybody was responsible, prudent, fair,” Town Hall Financial Director Steve Zielinski said. “It was a difficult task, especially after we found out about the BRU increase. Most of the districts looked like they were going to come in below prior years. We went over each of these budgets with a fine-tooth comb.”

Zielinski said despite reductions in many operating expenses, levels of service are being maintained and even improved.

In Lakewood Ranch Community Development District 1, supervisors adopted a $1,685,000 operating budget that includes a 4.7% increase in assessments. The district is budgeting $86,200 more for irrigation water and $25,000 in reserves for its capital improvement program.

In District 1, costs have also increased slightly for security patrol services — about $3,700 annually. However, operations costs for landscaping, lakes, conservation and utilities each decreased respectively; however, there was a 41% increase in irrigation costs over 2012 and 4.5% for other expenses, resulting in a net 7.8% increase.

In CDD 2, supervisors adopted a $2.45 million budget that includes a 2.4% assessment increase, even after a 102.4% increase in prior-year surplus utilization. The district is budgeting $95,200 more for irrigation water and $55,000 more for reserves for CIP projects and road reserves.

Despite a 44.7% increase in irrigation expenses, the district has lowered overall operations expenses by .9%, with the most significant savings seen in landscaping costs ($70,700, or 10.4%) and conservation ($146,800, or 32.1%).

In CDD 4, supervisors adopted a $1.7 million operating budget that includes a 6.1% increase in assessments. The district is budgeting $96,000 more for irrigation and $25,000 for reserves.

Under the operations budget, the district has designated more money for parks (27.1%), lakes (15.3%) and utilities (1.6%) and less for conservation (26.9%), landscaping (6.6%) and other costs (58.1%).

In CDD 5, supervisors adopted a $2.3 million operating budget that includes a 15.4% increase in assessments. Appropriation increases stem largely from plans to repave roadways ($188,500) and an additional $101,000 for irrigation-related costs.

Supervisors have designated dollars for ongoing litigation regarding storm-drain inlets in the district that are being repaired. Although 67.2% less has been budgeted for drain repairs, $160,000, or a 39% increase, has been included for association litigation costs. Reserves also have increased: General reserves rose from $84,000 to $161,000, and there was a $10,000 increase for capital improvements, for a total increase of 103.6%.

To view budget documents, visit lakewoodranchgov.org.

Contact Pam Eubanks at [email protected].