Michael Runas
206 Cantada Way
American Canyon, CA
​May 31, 2026
​City Council / Landscaping and Lighting Assessment District
City of American Canyon

​RE: Strong Opposition to Proposed LLAD Assessment Increases (Fiscal Year 2026/27) – Item Number: 15
​To the Members of the City Council and LLAD Program Administrators,
​I am writing to formally register my strong and unequivocal opposition to the proposed increases in the Landscaping and Lighting Assessment District (LLAD) annual levy for Fiscal Year 2026/27, as outlined in the staff report scheduled for the June 2, 2026, Public Hearing. Specifically, I object to the sharp, double-digit rate hikes targeting local property owners, which include a staggering 17.45% increase for Zone 1 and an even higher 25.41% spike for Zone 2.
​While the staff report contained in files 14408.jpg, 14406.jpg, 14404.jpg, and 14402.jpg attempts to justify these adjustments based on rising contract labor costs, historical cost reviews, and preliminary bids, placing this disproportionate financial burden entirely on the homeowners is unacceptable. Homeowners are already managing heavy inflationary pressures across all daily living expenses. A single-year increase of roughly 17% to 25% represents a severe spike rather than a stable, predictable cost-of-living adjustment.
​Furthermore, according to the report's community communication log, the public outreach regarding these specific hikes was severely delayed. The neighborhood "pop-up" informational meetings held in mid-April failed to actually alert residents to these planned increases because City staff admittedly did not know or disclose the figures at that time. Mailing notification letters on May 21, 2026—just days before the final vote—leaves property owners with virtually no reasonable window to review the Engineer's Report, organize neighborhood feedback, or seek alternative cost-saving measures.
​The district should instead utilize its substantial existing reserve contributions or aggressively renegotiate its external vendor landscaping contracts rather than relying on maximum allowed CPI formulas to extract more funding from residents. I urge the City Council to reject the resolution adopting the FY 2026/27 Engineer's Report in its current form and direct staff to find internal structural savings to balance the budget without raising property fees.
​Please enter this formal protest into the official public record for the June 2, 2026, hearing.
​Sincerely,
​Michael Runas