Starting in April, 2012 the Village, Big Bear Lake’s Shopping and Dining District on the South Shore of the lake, will begin a rejuvenation project replacing worn sidewalks, curbs and outdated lighting for streets and sidewalks and replacing and extending landscaping throughout the Village. All the scheduled work is within the Village Improvement District and is funded by Big Bear Lake Improvement Agency (IA) Property Tax Increment Funds received by the City’s Improvement Agency in past years. The work will not require any new bonds, taxes or assessments to property owners anywhere in the city. Just recently the California Supreme Court upheld Governor Jerry Brown’s democratically supported abolishment of all Improvement Agencies and the possibility of any community in California funding this type of improvement through existing property tax assessments via Improvement Agencies.

The 2012 Village Improvement Project implements several of the specific desired improvements developed as part of the Village Specific Plan Update process that started in 2009 and made part of the Capital Improvement Projects Plan for the City of Big Bear Lake in 2011.

The only other major work to the Village occurred in 1990-92 which included the first sidewalks, curbs and gutters in the history of the Village. Since then Improvement Agency Projects in the Village have included drainage, parking lots, and the extension of Improvements to Landscape and Lighting with the annexing of properties into the Village Assessment District (VAD) like the Northwoods Resort and The Club. The VAD assesses properties on Village and Pine Knot a Per Lineal Foot assessment collected each year to pay for a share of the cost of maintenance, utilities and replacement of curbs, gutters, landscaping and lighting within the VAD. No increase in the current assessment is anticipated in regard to the 2012 Village Improvement Projects.

The former Improvement Agency Board was made up of incumbant Big Bear Lake City Council Members, the current City Manager and supported by City Staff from Planning, Building and Safety and the City’s Economic Development Director. The Successor Agency charged with completing ongoing projects/commitments and unwinding the former IA has been formed by law per the new California Legislation.

2012 Village Construction hi-lites include the improvement of the former Knickerbocker Creek County Stormdrain Easement with construction of a mixed use trail for bicycle and pedestrian use from Village Dr. to Big Bear Blvd and adding Village Parking on Knickerbocker with a foot bridge over the drainage canal and a lighted path to Pine Knot Av. Construction features for the trail include various styles of fencing, lighting and landscaping elements. This portion of the construction is the beginning of an extensive trail system that will encourage pedestrian and bicycle use anc connect various neighborhoods in the city to the Lake, Village and Forest.  More on the details of the various phases and segments of the 2012 Construction Project in the City of Big Bear Lake Presentation.