Plan would separate Retreat district and cap debt at $9.538 million
The proposal would keep District 5’s existing services and operations levy limit; city estimates put its 2027 levy about $99 lower for an average Retreat home than under consolidation.
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A proposed plan before Colorado Springs City Council would separate Banning Lewis Ranch Metropolitan District No. 5, which serves The Retreat, from District 1’s consolidated service plan and limit District 5’s debt issuance to $9.538 million. The proposal would also raise the maximum debt levy to 50 mills while leaving the maximum operations-and-maintenance levy at 20 mills, according to a city planning presentation.
The proposed debt cap equals the amounts of the district’s three Series 2018 bond issues: $6.585 million in senior bonds, $1.011 million in subordinate bonds and $1.942 million in junior-lien bonds. The presentation describes the current overall debt limit under Resolution 52-08 as $100 million. The $9.538 million figure is based on the original bond issue amounts, not the current outstanding balance. A city response to Council members’ questions reports $9.448 million in bond principal and about $1.509 million in accrued interest outstanding at the end of 2025.
The proposal’s 50-mill maximum debt levy is up from the current 30-mill limit, adjusted to Jan. 1, 2008. The 20-mill operations-and-maintenance maximum would not change. These are levy limits, not rates the district would necessarily collect. The city response estimates the district levy for an average home in The Retreat at $1,880.62 under the separate plan, compared with $1,979.49 under the consolidated plan — a difference of $98.87, or about 5%. The estimates use assessed values dated Aug. 26, 2026, for taxes collected in 2027, and cover the district levy rather than a homeowner’s full tax bill. The proposal itself would not change residents’ taxes.
The Retreat is a 55-and-older community. Under the proposed service plan, District 5 would continue services including private-road and park maintenance, recreation, trash pickup and snow removal. The plan says separation would not change those services or the district’s obligations shared with other districts.
City Council discussed the request at an Oct. 12 work session, where it was listed as an item under study; the work-session video records no vote. As of Oct. 16, the Council had not approved the request. The city’s Oct. 12 agenda planner listed a proposed service-plan resolution for the Oct. 27 regular meeting.