Chapter VIII.
SPECIAL ASSESSMENTS AND IMPROVEMENTS
Section 8.1. General Power Relative to Special Assessments and Public Improvements. (a) The council shall have the power to make public improvements, including local improvements, within the city and, to the extent permitted by law, outside the city. The council may determine the necessity for any public improvement, and may determine that the whole or any part of the cost thereof, including the cost of plans, specifications, administration, engineering, architectural, and legal expenses, and of the acquisition of property in connection therewith, shall be levied by special assessments upon the property specially benefited thereby. When more than one lot or parcel of land is to be specially benefited, the project shall be considered as a special assessment district.
(b) Any special assessment for local improvements against property benefited shall be in proportion to, and shall not exceed, the value of the benefit received from the local improvements. The council shall establish the method of apportioning such benefits.
(c) If protests as to the necessity of a local improvement are made by the owners of property which will bear fifty percent or more of the estimated cost of the improvement, the public improvement shall not proceed until the objections have been reduced to less than fifty percent, except upon approval of at least five members of the council.
Section 8.2. Detailed Procedure to be Fixed in the Code. The procedure for local improvements may be commenced by the council either on its own initiative or upon receipt of a petition in the manner provided in the Code. The council shall prescribe in the Code the complete special agree-procedure for local improvements and for agreements for furnishing capital improvements and the extension thereof in lieu of assessment. For local improvements, such Code provisions shall include and require the following:
(1) The procedure for filing petitions for local improvements;
(2) A survey and report concerning the need for, desirable extent of, and estimated cost of each proposed local improvement;
(3) A public hearing by the council on the necessity for the local improvement;
(4) A resolution of the council determining to proceed or not to proceed with the proposed local improvement;
(5) A public hearing by the council on the special assessment roll for the local improvement;
(6) Publication of notice of each hearing required by this section in a newspaper published within the city and by first class mail to persons whose names appear on the current assessment roll as owners of real property within the special assessment district;
(7) A resolution confirming the special assessment roll for the local improvement.
Section 8.3. Expenditures before Funds for Improvement are Available. No expenditures, other than for administrative, engineering and legal work for any local improvement, the cost of which is to be borne by special assessments on the property benefited, shall be made unless the cash is on hand or bonds have been authorized to finance the cost thereof.
Section 8.4. Correction of Invalid Special Assessments. If any special assessment procedure of the council shall be irregular or invalid for any reason, the council may correct the same at any time within ninety days after the confirmation of the special assessment roll or after final determination of any litigation thereon, whether before or after the completion of the local improvement to which the special assessment applies. If payments of special assessments have been made under the irregular or invalid procedure, such payments shall be credited to payments required under the corrected procedure, or in the alternate, the council may provide in the Code for the payment of refunds.
Section 8.5. Limitations on Suits and Actions. No special assessment procedure shall be contested by any action at law or in equity, unless commenced within sixty days after the confirmation of the special assessment roll therefor. If no such action be so commenced, the procedure for such local improvement shall be conclusively presumed to have been regular and complete.
Section 8.6. Lien for and Collection of Special Assessments. (a) The city shall have a first lien upon all real property against which special assessments are assessed, and any such lien shall be of the same character, effect and duration, and shall be enforcble in the same manner as the lien for city taxes.
(b) The council shall provide procedure in the Code for the collection of special assessments and the collection charges, penalties and interest which shall be added for the delayed or delinquent payment thereof.
Section 8.7. Receipts from Special Assessments. Accounts for special assessment rolls shall be created and kept separate from all other city accounts. Moneys collected from special assessments shall be used solely to pay the cost of the improvements to which they apply and to the principal of and interest on indebtedness of the city.
Section 8.8. All Real Property Liable for Special Assessments. All real property, including such as is exempt from taxation by law, shall be liable for the cost of local improvements assessed in accordance with this chapter, unless specifically exempted from special assessments by law.