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SANTA ANA'S PROPERTY BASED IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT benefit of certain individuals. That merchant also stated "So many people donated their time and money to helping the downtown and to see this infuriates me so much." By August of 2011, the level of discord and combative rhetoric had reached a high level of intensity. By this time, the special assessments had taken place, the actual amounts of the moneys due were known, many had gone unpaid, and actions were being taken to collect those in arrears. This was taking place during a time of economic distress as well. The primary influences promoting the changes to this consistently historical area were the developer on the one hand with resistance by the cultural traditionalists on the other, with the latter being forced to pay for the changes which they vigorously opposed. They were being assessed monies that were being used to change the identity of the very area that they had long cherished. Allegations of racism inevitably became an integral part of the dispute and further escalated the loudness of the discussion and the intensity of the differences. Many property owners complained that the special assessment district was illegal in its formation, and that the promoters of the special district deliberately eliminated the disestablishment procedure. The petitions to disestablish the assessment district were in an amount representing numbers considerably in excess of the minimum required and have been submitted to the City of Santa Ana.5 It is also alleged that the City of Santa Ana voted its interest in the formation process in violation of the proper procedures established by law and that their vote constituted 38% of the votes needed to establish the district. The results have caused, on average, a doubling of the financial burdens on the respective properties. Additionally, these property owners point out that the majority of the proceeds of the assessment are being utilized in a manner that benefits a particular clientele, those related to the business interests of the developers with little or no benefit to the majority of the property owners. They believe that they are paying a significant surcharge on their properties that they cannot afford, for services that are of no benefit to them or their businesses, with the result that they will be driven out of business, and have become disenfranchised and disillusioned. And, although numerous requests and proposals for relief were made to the Santa Ana City Council, continuing inaction by the city council has aggravated an already serious situation. A significant number of issues have arisen related to the procedures required to establish a Community Improvement Districts. Many of these issues are directly related to the originating ordinance approved by the City Council while others are related to specific provisions of the California Government Code and the Constitution of the State of California: "Prior to levying a new or increased assessment, or an existing assessment that is subject to the procedures and approval process set forth in Section 4 of Article XIII D of the California Constitution, an agency shall give notice by mail to the record owner of each identified parcel. Each notice shall include the total amount of the proposed 5 Streets and Highway Code Section 36670(a). 2011-2012 ORANGE COUNTY GRAND JURY Page 217