City of Brownton - Notice of Hearing

City of Brownton

NOTICE OF HEARING ON
PROPOSED ASSESSMENT
Notice is hereby given that the Brownton city council will meet at 6:45 p.m. on Tuesday, October 6, 2020, at the Brownton Community Center, to consider, and possibly adopt, the proposed assessment for the 2019 Street Improvement Project-Rebid, which includes partial reconstruction on the following streets:
• 4th Street S from 5th Avenue S to 6th Avenue S (gravel with curb and gutter)
• 4th Street S from 6th Avenue S to 8th Avenue S (bituminous with curb and gutter)
• 1st Avenue S from south City limits to 3rd Street S (bituminous, partial curb and gutter)
• 1st Avenue N from Division Street to 2nd Street N (gravel, no curb and gutter)
• 9th Avenue N from Alley to 2nd Street N (gravel with curb and gutter)
by construction of concrete curb and gutter, aggregate base, bituminous surfacing, turf restoration, and miscellaneous items required to properly complete the improvements. Adoption by the council of the proposed assessment may occur at the hearing. The area proposed to be assessed for such improvements includes properties abutting such improvements, and non-abutting properties that benefit from the improvements.
Such assessment is proposed to be payable in equal annual installments extending over a period of 15 years, the first of the installments to be payable on or before the first Monday in January 2021, and will bear interest at a rate of 4.0 percent per annum after November 1, 2020. To the first installment shall be added interest on the entire assessment from November 2, 2020, until December 31, 2021. To each subsequent installment when due shall be added interest for one year on all unpaid installments.
You may at any time prior to certification of the assessment to the County Auditor-Treasurer on November 30, 2020, pay the entire assessment on such property to the office of the City Clerk. No interest shall be charged if the entire assessment is paid by November 1, 2020. You may at any time thereafter, pay to the City Clerk the entire amount of the assessment remaining unpaid, with interest accrued to December 31 of the year in which such payment is made. Such payment must be made before November 15 or interest will be charged through December 31 of the succeeding year. If you decide not to prepay the assessment before the date given above the rate of interest that will apply is 4.0 percent per year. The right to partially prepay the assessment is available.

The proposed assessment roll is on file for public inspection at the City Clerk’s office. The total cost of the project is $298,145.29. The total amount of the proposed assessment is $33,711.60. Written or oral objections will be considered at the meeting. No appeal may be taken as to the amount of an assessment unless a written objection signed by the affected property owner is filed with the City Clerk prior to the assessment hearing or presented to the presiding officer at the hearing. The council may upon such notice consider any objection to the amount of a proposed individual assessment at an adjourned meeting upon such further notice to the affected property owners as it deems advisable.
If an assessment is contested or there is an adjourned hearing, the following procedure will be followed:
1. The city will present its case first by calling witnesses who may testify by narrative or by examination, and by the introduction of exhibits. After each witness has testified, the contesting party will be allowed to ask questions. This procedure will be repeated with each witness until neither side has further questions.
2. After the city has presented all its evidence, the objector may call witnesses or present such testimony as the objector desires. The same procedure for questioning of the city's witnesses will be followed with the objector’s witnesses.
3. The objector may be represented by counsel.
4. Minnesota rules of evidence will not be strictly applied; however, they may be considered and argued to the council as to the weight of items of evidence or testimony presented to the council.
5. The entire proceedings will be tape-recorded (video-taped).
6. At the close of presentation of evidence, the objector may make a final presentation to the council based on the evidence and the law. No new evidence may be presented at this point.
7. The council may adopt the proposed assessment at the hearing.
An owner may appeal an assessment to district court pursuant to Minn. Stat. § 429.081 by serving notice of the appeal upon the mayor and city clerk of the city within 30 days after the adoption of the assessment and filing such notice with the district court within ten days after service upon the mayor or clerk.

Under Minn. Stat. §§ 435.193 to 435.195, the council may, in its discretion, defer the payment of this special assessment for any homestead property owned by a person 65 years of age or older for whom it would be a hardship to make the payments. When deferment of the special assessment has been granted and is terminated for any reason provided in that law, all amounts accumulated plus applicable interest become due. Any assessed property owner meeting the requirements of this law and the policy adopted under it may, within 30 days of the confirmation of the assessment, apply to the City Clerk for the prescribed form for such deferral of payment of this special assessment on their property.
Lori Cacka
City Clerk/Treasurer
(Published in The McLeod County Chronicle September 23, 2020)