To: Honorable Mayor and Members of City Council
From: Molly Rattigan, Interim Community Development Director
Prepared By: Jennifer Owen, Economic Development Program Coordinator
TITLE:
Title
Downtown Napa Property and Business Improvement District Renewal
LABEL
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Recommendation
Adopt a Resolution Declaring the City’s Intention to renew the Downtown Napa Property and Business Improvement District, and set a public hearing for June 17, 2025, at 6:30 P.M. in City Hall Council Chambers, 955 School Street, Napa, CA.
Body
DISCUSSION:
The Downtown Napa Property and Business Improvement District (DNPBID), formed in February 2005, is a benefit assessment district that funds marketing programs such as advertising and events, environmental enhancements such as circulation improvements, landscaping, artistic amenities, street furniture, lighting, signage, and services that create a benefit to the member properties. These benefits are concentrated within the distinct geographic boundaries of the DNPBID and are funded by means of a special assessment on parcels within the DNPBID boundary, currently totaling 273 individual assessed parcels.
Petition Drive
Pursuant to the process set forth in California Streets and Highways Code Sections 36600, et seq., the initial step of the DNBPID renewal process is a petition drive. The petition drive must result in receiving signed petitions from property owners representing at least 50 percent of the total Year 1 assessment. If the City receives the required number of petitions, the City Council is asked to approve a Resolution of Intention to renew the Downtown Napa PBID.
The Downtown Napa PBID has completed an outreach and information campaign and petition drive to provide information on the renewal of the PBID for an additional seven years from 2026 to 2032, and asks the City Council to adopt a Resolution of Intention (Attachment 1) to formally initiate the renewal process. As of the writing of this report, the City Clerk is in receipt of petitions from property owners representing approximately 44 percent of the total annual assessment. These petitions are on file and available for review in the office of the City Clerk.
Renewal Ballots
Following adoption of the Resolution of Intention, Downtown Napa PBID renewal ballots (template included as Attachment 5) will be mailed to each property owner in the district, along with ballot instructions, a map of the district, and an Executive Summary of the Management District Plan, which describes in general the amount of the assessment in year 1 and the activities the Downtown Napa PBID would support (see the full Plan, Attachment 3 to this report). After a minimum 45-day period, a public hearing will be held and all returned ballots will be opened and counted at the hearing. Proposition 218 requires a ballot vote in which the ballots submitted in opposition to the assessment cannot exceed the ballots submitted in favor of the assessment (weighted by assessment). The returned ballots will be opened by the Napa City Clerk at the close of the public hearing scheduled for the evening of June 17, 2025. If the majority of the ballots (weighted by assessment) are in favor of the assessment, the Council can adopt a resolution of renewal on June17, 2025, which will renew the Downtown Napa PBID for an additional seven years.
FINANCIAL IMPACTS:
Renewal of the DNPBID would assess properties owned by the City, Housing Authority and Parking Authority at a combined total of $66,154.19 for calendar year 2026 and up to $69,461.90 for calendar year 2027. The annual assessment on each parcel is subject to an annual increase not to exceed 3% each year for actual program cost increases plus an optional 2% for special improvement projects. Rate increases would offset any annual labor and expense increases realized by the DNPBID in order to maintain continual levels of service from year to year plus any programmed special improvement projects. The annual DNPBID payment would be included for approval in the City’s two-year budget for fiscal years 2025-2026 and 2026-2027 as a General Fund expenditure. The DNPBID Owners’ Association is required to submit an annual report to the City each year outlining the assessment rate per parcel, and the City’s proposed assessment amount is provided each year at this time. The City levies the annual DNPBID assessments for collection by the Napa County Tax Collector.
CEQA:
The Interim Community Development Director has determined that the Recommended Action described in this Staff Report is not in-and-of-itself a “project” pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15378 since it does not result in a physical change in the environment. However, the Recommended Action is a part of a larger “project” that will be subject to environmental review in accordance with CEQA at the “earliest feasible time” prior to “approval” consistent with CEQA Guidelines Sections 15004 and 15352. The larger “project” includes the individual improvements funded by DNPBID revenue, some of which may be categorically exempt, but some of which may require further CEQA analysis after design work is completed and prior to approval of construction.
DOCUMENTS ATTACHED:
ATCH 1 - Resolution of the City of Napa City Council
ATCH 2 - Map of Proposed DNPBID Boundary 2026 - 2032
ATCH 3 - Downtown Napa Management District Plan
ATCH 4 - City Entity-Owned Properties and Assessments
ATCH 5 - Ballot
NOTIFICATION:
The DNPBID Owners’ Association was notified of this agenda item prior to the meeting date.