Gene Murrieta, an Incline Village resident looked at the bright orange brochure titled, ‘Information about the Town of Incline Village & 2008 Ballot Question,’ and said, ‘I call this the trick or treat brochure. The question, is becoming a town more of a trick or more of a treat for the residents of Incline Village and Crystal Bay?’
Washoe County Commissioners voted unanimously July 15 to place the advisory vote on the ballot for the November 4 general election. The ballot will ask the voters in Incline Village and Crystal Bay if they support the reorganization of the IVGID into the unincorporated town of Incline Village. The new municipality would merge Incline Village and Crystal Bay into the Town of Incline Village. The boundaries of the Town would be the current boundaries of the North Lake Tahoe Fire Protection District that includes Incline Village, Crystal Bay and up State Route 42 to Tahoe Meadows. The vote is not binding, but it is a way to get a sense of which direction residents want to point. (See Moonshine Ink, 10 July 2008,’Incline Village/Crystal Bay Move Closer to Becoming a Town.’)
When the idea first surfaced, there seemed to be overwhelming support, but many residents are thinking of changing directions. A public informational meeting held August 20, that many saw as a Q&A event, raised more questions than answers. ‘I don’t have enough information to make an informed decision. If the vote was today, mine would be no,’ said Bill Hane, Incline Village resident.
Jim Clark, Chairman of Independent Incline, thought that the meeting needed more structure to meet the needs of the public. ‘The format of the meeting didn’t allow for a presentation of the proposal and launched directly into Q&A . . . that was monopolized by a few people present with agendas while those who came to learn went home frustrated.’ Clark is anticipating at least two more public meetings before the election, and is sharing information with various service organizations including the North Lake Tahoe Chamber of Commerce and the Incline Village Rotary Club.
Residents primarily are concerned about the financial questions that becoming an unincorporated town brings. Clark said that Nevada law requires that the conversion from county to town must be ‘revenue neutral.’ Property and sales taxes collected from Incline Village/Crystal Bay taxpayers and gaming license fees collected from Incline Village/Crystal Bay casinos will be transferred from Washoe County to the new town.
‘The town proposal would entail a permanent transfer of $366,000 plus or minus per year from Washoe County to the Town of Incline Village to pay for transferred services of a part-time animal control employee, a part-time nuisance code enforcement employee and a full time planning/design review employee,’ wrote Clark in an email. Garbage collection, recreation and water, services that are now through IVGID, will be transferred as well.
The new town will need to provide these services, which some believe will lead to higher costs, in the form increased recreational fees and property taxes. Plus some question whether the election will reflect community wishes. ‘What if it’s 51 to 49 vote in favor of creating a town? Is that the true voice of the people?’ said one Incline Village resident that asked not to be named.
At the August 28 board meeting, William Horn, General Manager of IVGID said it will take at least 2,000 to 3,200 unbudgeted ‘person hours’ for the conversion from general improvement district to unincorporated town status. Staff developed a list of 117 items, some duplicates, that laid out the duties required that are currently not in the budget. Horn told the board, ‘You must understand the magnitude of what staff will need to work on after November 5 if people approve becoming a town.’ The board of trustees agreed on developing a task force to determine what they need to have ready by July 1, 2009, and instructed Horn and staff to document the costs of becoming a town that are not budgeted, validate if becoming a town is revenue neutral, and provide this information at the September 24 board meeting.
The elephant in the living room for many, or perhaps more aptly called, the elephant on the shores, is the issue of beach access to the citizens of the new municipality. Currently, there are two lawsuits in federal court that basically contest 1968 deed restrictions that allow only some property owners Incline Village beach access. One Incline Village resident, that asked to remain anonymous said, ‘Even if/when IVGID prevails on the existing litigation, the formation of the town will raise a new issue for the Crystal Bay beach access proponents and at the very least will cost the town another defense of a new legal issue.’
Public forums are scheduled for September 25 at Village Green and October 2 at the Chateau with at least one additional forum in October. Trick or Treat? Hopefully residents of Incline Village and Crystal Bay won’t have to wait until October 31 – or after November 4 – to find out.
