Title
Public Hearing and Resolution to Approve the 2026 Downtown Enhanced Municipal Services District Assessments (Resolution 22338) - Districts 7 & 8
Description
Request to hold a public hearing for the approval of the 2026 Downtown Enhanced Municipal Services District (Downtown EMSD) assessments and adopt a resolution approving such assessments for the 2026 calendar year. The General Fund estimated annual expenditure for this program is $452,017.
Report
Summary
Pursuant to Arizona state law, a public hearing must be held prior to the annual adoption of the assessments for the Downtown EMSD. The City Council authorized the formation of the Downtown EMSD in 1990 to provide enhanced public services, above and beyond the level of services provided in the remainder of the City. The costs for the Downtown EMSD services are paid through assessments on property owners within the Downtown EMSD boundaries, which are generally Garfield Street on the north, 7th Street on the east, 3rd Avenue on the west, and the railroad tracks south of Jackson Street on the south.
The City contracts directly with Downtown Phoenix, Inc. (DPI) to implement the work program, as described in Attachment A. The work plan and budget for calendar year (CY) 2026 provides a variety of enhanced services in the downtown core, including business improvement services and overall business development.
The annual assessments for the Downtown EMSD will be levied for CY 2026 after the required legal process for the Downtown EMSD has been completed. Assessments are determined in proportion to the benefits received by each parcel. There are approximately 742 parcels in the Downtown EMSD on which the budget will be assessed. This is based on the approved Downtown EMSD assessment diagram that indicates the properties to be assessed for enhanced municipal services. This diagram is on file with the Office of the Director of the City of Phoenix Street Transportation Department and was posted online at the City's Community and Economic Development Department website.
The figures below represent the assessments for private and public property owners based on the approved 2026 Downtown EMSD budget of $5,240,953. See Attachment B for a breakdown of the expense categories. This includes $172,645 for streetscape maintenance expenses, which are paid only by property owners and tenants adjacent to the Streetscape Improvement District (SID). The SID includes certain portions of Monroe Street from 3rd Avenue to 7th Street; Adams Street from 2nd Avenue to 2nd Street; 2nd Street from Jefferson to Van Buren streets; and 3rd Street from Monroe to Van Buren streets.
Estimated 2026 District Budget: $5,240,953
Estimated 2026 Assessment Revenue: $4,990,953
Estimated 2026 Non-assessment Revenue: $250,000
Downtown EMSD CY 2026 Assessments
Private Property Owners Assessments: $2,165,333
Public Property Assessments: $2,825,620
Total Assessments: $4,990,953
Streetscape Maintenance Expenses (expenses included in the figures above)
Private Property Owners Assessments: $103,799.15
Public Property Assessments: $68,845.85
Total Streetscape Expenses: $172,645
Financial Impact
The City's total estimated annual expenditure for this program is $1,343,610, which includes:
- $452,017 from the General Fund (approximate $8,628 increase from 2025);
- $665,747 from the Phoenix Convention Center;
- $159,804 from the Sports Facilities Fund; and
- $66,042 from the Phoenix Bioscience Core.
Concurrence/Previous Council Action
This item was recommended for approval at the Economic Development and the Arts Subcommittee meeting on September 10, 2025, by a vote of 3-0.
On October 15, 2025, the City Council approved:
- The 2026 Downtown EMSD Budget, Assessments and Set Public Hearing Date of November 5, 2025, for the hearing on the estimated assessments; and
- The 2026 Downtown EMSD Assessment Diagram.
Public Outreach
On October 15, 2025, the City Council set the date of November 5, 2025, as the date for the public hearing on the Downtown EMSD assessments. On October 15, 2025, a total of 20 days prior to the hearing as legally required, all property owners were notified by mail of their annual assessment cost by the Street Transportation and Community and Economic Development departments. In addition, DPI has sent letters to all property owners, and the Downtown EMSD Board approved the 2026 budget at its June 2025 board meeting.
To answer any questions that property owners in the Downtown EMSD might have, Community and Economic Development Department staff made themselves available virtually for an hour prior to the November 5, 2025, public hearing. Notice of the public hearing was also published in the Record Reporter as specified below. No further notification is required after the public hearing.
To be published:
The Record Reporter
- October 22, 2025
- October 24, 2025
Location
The Downtown EMSD is generally bounded by Garfield Street on the north, 7th Street on the east, 3rd Avenue on the west, and on the south by the railroad tracks south of Jackson Street
Council Districts: 7 and 8
Department
Responsible Department
This item is submitted by City Manager Jeffrey Barton, Deputy City Manager John Chan and the Street Transportation and Community and Economic Development departments.