Agenda Item Wording:
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Contested Special Assessments - Authorization to allow the City of Visalia to place items contested during the June 2, 2025, public hearing on the Miscellaneous Special Assessments on the Tulare County secured property tax roll.
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Prepared by: Ruth Pena, Financial Analyst 559-713-4327, ruth.pena@visalia.gov; Renee Nagel, Finance Director 559-713-4375, renee.nagel@visalia.gov
Department Recommendation: Staff is recommending that the Council adopt Resolution 2025-40, authorizing the City of Visalia to place items contested during the June 2, 2025, public hearing on the Miscellaneous Special Assessments on the Tulare County secured property tax roll.
Summary:
During the Public Hearing held on June 2, 2025, seven individuals objected to eight of the proposed tax roll assessments. Six property owners spoke in person at the public hearing and one property owner contested one proposed assessment in a conversation with City staff prior to the start of the meeting. Staff was directed to examine the assessments further and return with recommendations.
Of the eight contested items, three are being recommended to be placed on the Miscellaneous Special Assessments of the Tulare County secured property tax roll for collection for the original assessed amount, two are recommended at a modified assessed amount and three are recommended to be removed from the tax roll.
Background Discussion:
Public Hearing Process
In general, the current process of holding a public hearing to determine whether to place certain assessments, fines and delinquent costs on the tax roll is a limited process. The only issue to be considered by the Council is whether the assessment or fine is owed and the code procedure followed, not reviewing the background or cause of the assessment in the first instance. In all cases, an administrative appeal hearing process has been provided to determine the substance of the issue, and there is no further appeal to the City Council.
Pursuant to Visalia Municipal Code Sections 15.44.040 and 8.40.060, administrative costs associated with overseeing the abatement of the conditions constituting a public nuisance (including the cost of inspections) may be assessed and made a lien on the real property where the public nuisance exists or existed.
The City has put in place an administrative enforcement procedure (Visalia Municipal Code Chapter 1.13) that allows property owners to appeal both the determination that a nuisance exists as well as the assessment of inspection fees through an administrative process, culminating in a hearing before an Administrative Hearing Officer, which results in a final Administrative Enforcement Order. Under this process, if the appellant disagrees with the Hearing Officer’s decision, the appellant has 90 days to appeal the decision to the Superior Court - there is no appeal to the City Council.
Only after all administrative and court appeals periods have expired is the City authorized to place unpaid fines and abatement fees (including inspection fees) on the Tulare County property tax roll for collection.
Following this process, the Finance Department presented the Council on June 2, 2025, Resolution 2025-17, to place unpaid fees on the Tulare County property tax roll for collection. The fees are from cases for which the property owner has not appealed within the statutory time frame.
Payments can be made by June 30, 2025, to avoid the assessment being placed on the tax roll.
The review of all contested items has allowed staff to work with property owners to reach solutions which minimize the tax roll amount. As summarized in Table 1: Summary of Staff Recommendations for Contested Tax Roll Amounts, staff is recommending that the full lien amount possible of $44,195.31 be placed on the tax roll. This amount may be reduced at a later date, contingent upon property owner’s performance under the Stipulated Agreements discussed below.
Table 1: Summary of Staff Recommendations for Contested Tax Roll Amounts
Each lien is discussed in further detail below.
Liens Recommended to Place on Tax Roll: The following items have been reviewed as directed by the Council and are recommended to be placed on the tax roll.
1. Property Owner: Timothy Shayne Smith
Property Address: 3045 W Tyler
APN: 078-180-064
Account #: CE242036
Lien Amount: $3,048.10
Tax Roll Amount: $78.10
The Planning and Community Development Department and Neighborhood Preservation Division will enter into a Stipulated Agreement with the property owner. Under this agreement, the portion of this lien representing fines owed ($2,700.00) will be held in abeyance for a total of 36 months and will be dismissed if there are no further issues at the property during that 36-month time frame (see item #6 below). This agreement must be signed by June 30, 2025, or the full lien amount of $2,771.00 plus a 10% administrative fee of $277.10, for a total of $3,048.10 will be placed on the tax roll for collection, which includes the inspection fee discussed below
If the agreement is executed in a timely manner, staff recommends that the remaining balance of this lien, representing an outstanding inspection fee of $71.00, plus the ten percent administrative fee of $7.10, for a total of $78.10 be placed as a tax lien assessment on the property at 3045 W Tyler. Attachment 2 provides additional information on the details of the procedures that were followed.
2. Property Owner: Chopra Family Limited Partnership
Property Address: 1100 N Ben Maddox
APN: 098-280-001
Account #: CE240349
Lien Amount: $3.159.04
Tax Roll Amount: $79.04
The Planning and Community Development Department and Neighborhood Preservation Division will enter into a Stipulated Agreement with the property owner. Under this agreement, the portion of this lien representing fines owed ($2,800.00) will be held in abeyance for a total of 36 months and will be dismissed if there are no further issues at the property during that 36-month time frame (see item #7 below). This agreement must be signed by June 30, 2025, or the full lien amount of $2,871.85 plus a ten percent administrative fee of $287.19, for a total of $3,159.04 will be placed on the tax roll for collection, which includes the inspection fee discussed below.
If the agreement is executed in a timely manner, staff recommends that the outstanding inspection fee of $71.85, plus the ten percent administrative fee of $7.19, for a total of $79.04 be placed as a tax lien assessment on the property at 1100 N Ben Maddox Way. Attachment 3 provides additional information on the details of the procedures that were followed.
3. Property Owner: Jennifer Meza
Property Address: 1209 E Ferguson Ave
APN: 091-260-018
Acct#: 872393
Original Lien Amt: $762.99
Payment: $64.84
Lien Balance: $698.15 (March 1, 2024 - December 31, 2024)
The Finance Department and Utility Billing have determined that the property owner was given proper notification of the tax roll amount. In addition, she has been receiving her monthly invoice by email since November 2024 and was able to see the total balance when she made a payment using the portal in October 2024. Staff recommends that the outstanding balance of $648.15, plus the administrative fee of $50.00, for a total of $698.15 be placed as a tax lien assessment on the property at 1209 E Ferguson. The customer will automatically be removed from the tax roll list if full payment is received by June 30, 2025. Attachment 4 provides additional information on the details of the procedures that were followed.
4. Property Owner: Jorge E Reyes Utility Billing
Property Address: 1020 N Divisadero St
APN: 093-061-023
Account #: 743955
Lien Amount: $735.54 (January 1, 2024 - December 31, 2024)
The Finance Department and Utility Billing have determined that the property owner was given proper notification of the tax roll amount. Staff recommends that the outstanding balance of $685.54, plus the administrative fee of $50.00, for a total of $735.54 be placed as a tax lien assessment on the property at 1020 N Divisadero. The customer will automatically be removed from the tax roll list if full payment is received by June 30, 2025. Attachment 5 provides additional information on the details of the procedures that were followed.
5. Property Owner: Susanne Gundy
Property Address: 636 E Roosevelt Ave
APN: 094-130-051
Account #: 019907
Lien Amount: $19,230.44 (January 1, 2024 - December 31, 2024)
The Finance Department and Utility Billing Division has determined that the property owner was given proper notification of the tax roll amount and that all policies and procedures were followed according to the municipal code. Staff recommends that the outstanding balance of $19,180.44, plus the administrative fee of $50.00, for a total of $19,230.44 be placed as a tax lien assessment on the property at 636 E Roosevelt Ave. Attachment 6 provides additional information on the details of the procedures that were followed.
Not Recommended to Place on Tax Roll: The following items have been reviewed as directed by the Council and are recommended to be removed from the tax roll and dealt with administratively by staff.
6. Property Owner: Timothy Shayne Smith
Property Address: 3045 W Tyler
APN: 078-180-064
Account #: CE242036
Lien Amount: $3,048.10
Removed Amount: $2,700.00
As discussed in item #1 above, the Planning and Community Development Department and Neighborhood Preservation Division will enter into a Stipulated Agreement with the property owner. The portion of this lien representing fines ($2,700) will be held in abeyance for a total of 36 months and will be dismissed if there are no further issues at the property. This agreement must be signed by June 30, 2025, or the full lien amount of $2,771.00 plus a 10% administrative fee of $277.10, for a total of $3,048.10 will be placed on the tax roll for collection. If the agreement is executed in a timely manner, the amount of $78.10 is recommended to be placed on the tax roll as discussed in item #1 above. Attachment 2 provides additional information on the details of the procedures that were followed.
7. Property Owner: Chopra Family Limited Partnership
Property Address: 1100 N Ben Maddox
APN: 098-280-001
Account #: CE240349
Lien Amount: $3,159.04
Removed Amount: $2,800.00
As discussed in item #2 above, the Planning and Community Development Department and Neighborhood Preservation Division will enter into a Stipulated Agreement with the property owner. The portion of this lien representing fines ($2,800) will be held in abeyance for a total of 36 months and will be dismissed if there are no further issues at the property. This agreement must be signed by June 30, 2025, or the full lien amount of $2,871.85 plus a ten percent administrative fee of $287.19, for a total of $3,159.04 will be placed on the tax roll for collection. If the agreement is executed in a timely manner, the amount of $79.04 is recommended to be placed on the tax roll as discussed in item #2 above. Attachment 3 provides additional information on the details of the procedures that were followed.
8. Property Owner: Marisol Umanzor
Property Address: 217 NW 3rd Ave
APN: 094-041-002
Account #: CE240928
Lien Amount: $10,818.34
Removed Amount: $9,834.85
The Planning and Community Development Department and Neighborhood Preservation Division has entered into a Stipulated Agreement with the property owner. The owner has agreed to have the property cleaned up and all violations removed within 30 days of the agreement. Additionally, she will pay the remaining balance of $2,350.00 for the original inspection fines as well as the inspection fees in the amount of $484.85. If the agreed upon violation removals are not complete and the inspection fines are not paid within 30 days of the agreement date, the full lien amount of $9,834.85 plus a ten percent administrative fee of $983.49 for a total of $10,818.34 will be placed on the tax roll for collection.
The remaining fines of $7,000.00 will be held in abeyance for a total of 36 months and will be dismissed if there are no further issues at the property. Attachment 7 provides additional information on the details of the procedures that were followed.
9. Property Owner: Lisa and Ronald Colburn
Property Address: 777 N Burke
APN: 094-110-008
Case Number: CE230804
Lien Amount: $3,252.85
10. Property Owner: Lisa and Ronald Colburn
Property Address: 250 S Burke
APN: 094-211-027
Case Number: CE230805
Lien Amount: $3,252.85
The owner of the properties above (items #9 and #10) has hired 4-Creeks Engineering to assist with the issues at both addresses. Staff confirmed that plans have been submitted on both parcels by 4-Creeks Engineering.
Based upon the good-faith efforts of the property owner, staff recommends that both items be removed from the tax lien process to allow the engineering firm to complete the plans so the property can move forward with compliance. There is no attachment for this item.
Fiscal Impact: Without placement on the Tax Roll, these charges for services are unlikely to be recovered.
Prior Council Action: City Council Public Hearing on June 2, 2025.
Other: N/A
Alternatives: Do not authorize the Finance Department to place parcels 078-180-064, 098-280-001, 091-260-018, 093-061-023, 094-130-051, 094-041-002, 094-110-008, and 094-211-027 on the Miscellaneous Special Assessment of the Tulare County secured tax roll.
Recommended Motion (and Alternative Motions if expected):
recommendation
Adoption of Resolution 2025-40 that allows the City of Visalia to place the assessment for parcels 078-180-064, 098-280-001, 091-260-018, 093-061-023, 094-130-051, 094-041-002, 094-110-008, and 094-211-027 on the miscellaneous assessments of the Tulare County secured tax roll for collection.
Environmental Assessment Status: N/A
CEQA Review: N/A
Deadline for Action: 6/16/2025
Attachments:
l Attachment 1: Resolution 2025-40
l Attachment 2: 078-180-064 (3045 W Tyler)
l Attachment 3: 098-280-001 (1100 N Ben Maddox)
l Attachment 4: 091-260-018 (1209 E Ferguson Ave)
l Attachment 5: 093-061-023 (1020 N Divisadero St)
l Attachment 6: 094-130-051 (636 E Roosevelt Ave)
l Attachment 7: 094-041-002 (217 NW 3rd Ave)
l Attachment 8: PowerPoint Presentation