Community Development Districts (CDDs)
A CDD is a governmental unit created to serve the long-term specific needs of its community. Created pursuant to chapter 190 of the Florida Statutes, a CDD’s main powers are to plan, finance, construct, operate and maintain community-wide infrastructure and services specifically for the benefit of its residents.
What will the CDD Do?
Through a CDD, the community can offer its residents a broad range of community-related services and infrastructure to help ensure the highest quality of life possible. CDD responsibilities within our community include storm water management, sewer and wastewater management, and stormwater pond ownership and maintenance on the Pine Island side of Bella Collina.
How CDDs Operate
A CDD is governed by its Board of Supervisors which is elected initially by the landowners, then begins transitioning to residents of the CDD after six years of operation. Like all municipal, county, state, and national elections, the Office of the Supervisor of Elections oversees the vote, and CDD Supervisors are subject to state ethics and financial disclosure laws.
The CDD’s business is conducted in the “Sunshine,” which means all meetings and records are open to the public. Public hearings are held on CDD assessments. and the CDD’s budget is subject to annual independent audit.
Relationship with the Bella Collina Property Owners Association (POA)
The CDD and POA responsibilities differ in that the POA is responsible for maintaining and enforcing all of the covenants, conditions, restrictions related to use of homeowner’s property in Bella Collina, or common area property. Any planned new construction, additions, or exterior modification to existing structures or landscaping must first be reviewed and approved in writing by the Architectural Review Committee (ARC), whose members are appointed by the POA Board.
Contact David Burman, Property Manager, of Aegis Community Management Solutions, Inc. at 863-967-8560 for information about property use restrictions (parking issues, pets, or any nuisances). CLICK HERE for POA website access information: PDF | RTF.
Benefits to Residents
Residents within a community with a CDD may expect to receive three major classes of benefits. First, the CDD provides landowners consistently high levels of public facilities and services managed and financed through self-imposed fees and assessments. Second, the CDD ensures that these community development facilities and services are maintained at a proper level. Third, CDD residents elect the Board of Supervisors, which is able to determine the type, quality and expense of CDD facilities and services.
Other savings are realized because a CDD is subject to the same laws and regulations that apply to other government entities. The CDD is able to borrow money to finance its facilities at lower, tax-exempt, interest rates, the same as cities and counties. Many contracts for goods and services, such as annually negotiated maintenance contracts, are subject to publicly advertised competitive bidding.
The Cost of a CDD
The cost to operate a CDD is borne by those who benefit from its services. Property owners in the CDD are subject to a non-ad valorem assessment, which appears on their annual property tax bill from the county tax collector and may consist of two parts—an annual assessment for operations and maintenance, which can fluctuate up and down from year to year based on the budget adopted for that fiscal year—and an annual capital assessment to repay bonds sold by the CDD to finance community infrastructure and facilities, which annual assessments are generally fixed for the term of the bonds. Because costs and services vary depending upon the individual CDD, specific fee information is available for each community.
Community Development District FAQs
Q. Who governs the Bella Collina CDD?
A. The CDD is governed by a five-member Board of Supervisors elected initially by the land owners on a one acre/one vote basis. No sooner than the 6th year, and not before there are 250 qualified electors in the District, Supervisors will begin to be elected by the Districts qualified electors (registered voters and permanent residents of the District).
Q. What specific facilities are in the District?
A. The District constructed facilities for water production, treatment, transmission and distribution, and wastewater and sewer facilities. It also funded cost of stormwater drainage and stormwater ponds on the Pine Island side of the community.
Q. What serviced does the District provide my lot?
A. The District supplies each lot in Bella Collina with potable (drinking) and non-potable (irrigation) water, as well as effluent (waste water) services.
Q. How are CDD services financed?
A. The CDD issues Special Assessment Revenue Bonds to finance community infrastructure. Generally, Community Development Districts assess each property owner a yearly capital debt service assessment to pay back those bonds over a 30 year period. This is the amount that appears on your tax bill as a portion of the Bella Collina CDD assessment. This debt service assessment is a “lien” that is placed on your property to ensure bond payments are made. This lien is on the property, and is not required to be “paid off” before the property is sold. The debt service obligations on your parcel can be paid off prior to the amortization schedule by the landowner/homeowner. For information on your individual debt service payoff amount, please contact the District Office.
In addition, to maintaining the CDD facilities of the community and administering the CDD, the CDD conducts a public hearing each year at which it adopts an operating and maintenance budget. The funding of this budget is levied as an operating and maintenance assessment on your property by the Board of Supervisors. All residents pay for a share of the maintenance of the CDD improvements through this annual assessment. The debt assessment was set at the time of the bond issue, and is reaffirmed by the Board annually during the budget process.
Q. How are annual operations and maintenance assessment determined?
A. The annual operating and maintenance assessment amount will be set annually by the Board of Supervisors through the statutorily required budget process. For information about the current budget, please see the Financial Information tab. The debt assessment is reaffirmed by the Board annually during the budget process.
Q. Will Bella Collina’s developers pay assessments?
A. Yes. Bella Collina’s developer will pay assessments on all developable land within the District that is owned by the developer.
Q. What are the ongoing responsibilities of the CDD?
A. The ongoing responsibilities of the CDD are to administer CDD bonds, operate and maintain the CDD facilities for the benefit of landowners/homeowners.
Q. How Do I Find Out More About the Bella Collina Community Development District?
A. For more information about the Bella Collina Community Development District, please contact the District Manager’s Office.