Now that the 2023 Carefree Property Tax Initiative was defeated, I remain puzzled as to who is actually responsible for paying the $30M Bond water project on Tom Darlington Drive.
I was under the impression that responsibility lay with the City of Carefree Water Department; however, a recent encounter with a current council member indicated that the project was “only” $18M Bond and they had a “plan” for payment.
Research into these bonds produced the following:
- Bonds issue date was September 2, 2021 with an 8-year call date of
2029 and a maturity date of July 1, 2046 - The Bonds were tax-free Municipal Bonds with a coupon of 4%
- A few bonds were recently offered at a discount on the secondary market.
Unlike most municipal bonds, this same council member admitted that no advertisement was made in reference to a bond offering.
Neither a project nor a bond issuance was presented to the residents of Carefree as a ballot option.
By the bond maturity date of 2046, most of Carefree’s current residents will have moved on or passed on. Was this the “plan”?
Whether the Carefree Water Company or the City of Carefree (they’re joined at the hip) is fiscally responsible for paying off these bonds, the current debt may well
rest on Carefree’s citizens and property owners.
No matter which shell the “peas of truth” are under, identifying Rural Metro as a reason for a property tax is a red herring.
Richard King
Carefree
