The Grove funding renewal heads for November ballot

Clayton city officials are putting the final touches on a measure for the November ballot that will assure funding for the downtown park until 2038.

In 2006, Clayton voters approved a 10-year parcel tax to pay for the operation and maintenance of The Grove through a special Community Facilities District (CFD). Although the CFD won’t expire until June 2016, the Council wants to play it safe by placing it on the ballot in November.

A tax measure can only be on the ballot in a general election year and only when there is at least one elected official on the same ballot.

The CFD was approved in 2006 with a healthy 68.19 percent and the council expects that voters will have no problem renewing the CFD. However, in the event of a surprise, the city would have one more opportunity in 2016 to pass the tax before the park funding runs out.

The current rate is $18.56 per parcel which will go up 2.78 percent in 2014-15. The new CFD will use the same tax rate as the expiring one with the same provision for an annual CPI increase of up to 3 percent.

There are approximately 4,000 parcels — including residential, commercial and open space — subject to the CFD parcel tax, which will generate an estimated $120,000 in revenue.

Only The Grove Park is funded by the CFD. Maintenance and operation of the other Clayton parks comes from the general fund.