(A) When a portion of a single tract or parcel of real property is partitioned or divided in accordance with applicable land use laws, or when the ownership of a portion of a single tract of real property less than the entire tract is transferred or a portion is conveyed by a long-term lease that is at least ten years in duration, a lien against the real property in favor of the city shall be apportioned upon compliance with the terms of this section.
(B) Applications for the apportionment of liens shall be made to the City Recorder describing the tract to be segregated. The application must be completed by the owner, mortgagee, lienholder, or tenant having an interest in the parcel. When the deed, mortgage, or other instrument evidencing the applicant’s ownership or other interest in the parcel has not been recorded by the County Clerk of the county in which the parcel is situated, the city shall not apportion the special assessment unless the applicant files a true copy of that deed, mortgage, or instrument with the city.
(C) The City Recorder shall compute the apportionment whenever the special assessment remains wholly or partially unpaid and full payment or an installment payment is not due. The apportionment shall be calculated on the same basis as it was originally computed. The apportionment shall not be made unless each part of the original tract of land, after the apportionment, has a true cash value, as determined from a certificate of the County Assessor or appraisal of a qualified appraiser, of 120% or more of the amount of the lien as applied to each tract apportioned. The valuation must be determined within one year prior to the date of the application.
(D) When a special assessment is being paid in installments and a request to apportion is authorized, the remaining installments not yet due shall be prorated among the smaller parcels so that each parcel shall be charged with that percentage of the remaining installment payments equal to the percentage of the unpaid assessment charged to the parcel upon apportionment.
(E) Apportionment of a special assessment under this section shall be done in accordance with a resolution of the Council. The resolution shall describe each parcel of real property affected by the apportionment, the amount of the assessment levied against each parcel, the owner of each parcel, and such additional information as is required to keep a permanent and complete record of the assessments and payments.
(F) An application shall not be processed until the applicant pays a fee to defray the costs of evaluating the application. The amount of the fee shall be set by Council resolution.
(Prior Code, § 3.495)