Woodland HOA Guide
Spring Lake HOA Guide: Mello-Roos, Parks and Mow Strips
Spring Lake is the planned neighborhood in southeast Woodland, built under a specific plan the city adopted in December 2001. Its homes carry three city charges on the property tax bill, and owners look after the planting strip in front of their homes.
Spring Lake owners often ask who pays for what. The short answer: the city maintains the public parks, parkways, drainage and street lights through special charges on the tax bill. Owners maintain their own mow strips. An HOA, where there is one, pays only for what it owns.
Facts on this page were checked against the City of Woodland’s Spring Lake documents, its 2023-24 engineer’s report for the Spring Lake district, the Woodland Municipal Code and Yolo County’s website on October 28, 2026. Some city documents behind this page date from earlier years, so confirm the current charge or rule with the office listed before you act on it. For citywide rules on trees, parking, rentals and water, see the Woodland HOA Guide. Sources are listed at the bottom of the page.
At a glance
Spring Lake at a glance
No public agency publishes a count of HOAs in Spring Lake or a typical dues figure, so we do not quote one. The city’s own documents describe the neighborhood this way:
None of these charges is HOA dues. They are on each owner’s property tax bill and pay the City of Woodland.
Local rules
Rules that apply in Spring Lake
Spring Lake follows every Woodland city rule, plus the specific plan’s own standards. If your home is also in an association, your governing documents add a third layer. The city does not enforce your CC&Rs, and your CC&Rs do not excuse anyone from a city rule.
The Spring Lake Mello-Roos taxIt paid for roads, pipes and drainage, not parks or schools.
The city formed the Spring Lake community facilities district in 2004 to finance backbone infrastructure: roads, water, sewer and storm drain facilities. The city says the bonds do not pay for parks, and the district does not pay for schools. The authorized bond limit is $112.5 million.
- The tax is set by a home’s zoning designation, not its price or when it was built.
- It starts when the city issues a building permit for the home.
- It can rise by up to 2% a year until the bonds are repaid. A larger increase would need a vote of owners.
- It cannot be levied past 2050.
- An owner can pay it off with a one-time prepayment. Ask city Finance for a calculation.
Sellers must disclose the tax, usually in closing documents. If buyers in your community ask the association about it, point them to the city, not to your budget.
What to do about it: What Assessments Your HOA Community Needs and Why explains the difference between HOA assessments and public charges.
The landscaping and lighting districtThe city maintains public parks, parkways, drainage and lights.
The Spring Lake Landscaping and Lighting District is an assessment district under the state’s 1972 Landscaping and Lighting Act. The city’s 2023-24 engineer’s report lists what it pays for:
- landscaped parkways along arterial and collector roads
- greenbelts and neighborhood parks with play equipment
- drainage channels and regional ponds
- street trees, graffiti removal and wall and fence repair along designated areas
- about 1,740 street lights and the signals at 18 intersections
Rates are set by zoning. The 2023-24 report set the maximum at $1,235.08 per benefit unit for an R-5 single-family lot, the base unit, and the maximum rises each year with a construction labor cost index. When a new neighborhood park is finished, the city adjusts the assessment to cover its upkeep after a public hearing at a City Council meeting.
For an association, this list is the place to start. Do not budget for a park, greenbelt, channel or arterial parkway the district maintains unless your recorded maps show the association owns it.
What to do about it: What Are HOA Assets? and Who Pays for Repairs in an HOA? For the California rules behind these projects, see California HOA maintenance and repair responsibilities and California HOA reserves.
The Sports Park districtSpring Lake helps pay to maintain part of the city Sports Park.
Woodland’s General Plan requires new development to provide park land and a way to pay for its upkeep. Spring Lake met part of its park requirement with about 29 acres of the 40-acre Sports Park, which developers paid to build. A separate community facilities district pays to maintain that part of the Sports Park.
The city says future development will join this district, and existing residents can be added only by a ballot vote.
What to do about it: Planning Your HOA Budget helps you keep public costs out of your association’s budget.
Mow strips and street treesOwners maintain the strip between the sidewalk and the street.
The Spring Lake Specific Plan says landscaping strips along local streets are maintained by the fronting or side-on property owner. The city’s water-wise mow strip guidance lets owners replace the lawn in those strips with drought-tolerant planting, within limits:
- the strip must stay a planter, not paving, though a mix of bark or decomposed granite and plants is fine
- plants may not grow taller than 3 feet, and nothing may top 3½ feet near driveways and corners
- work may not harm the existing street tree
- no thorny or hazardous plants next to the sidewalk, and nothing that blocks it
The city publishes a master plant list and four sample planting plans. Street tree questions go to Public Works at (530) 661-5962. The citywide tree rules also apply: removing a tree 24 inches or more across within 20 feet of the sidewalk needs city review first.
If your association’s landscape rules cover front yards and mow strips, check that they fit the city’s guidance and Civil Code section 4735, which bars an association from banning low-water plants as a replacement for lawn on an owner’s lot.
What to do about it: How to Propose Changes to Your Property in a Homeowners Association covers architectural review.
Where an HOA fitsThe association’s job is what it owns, nothing more.
The city’s Spring Lake documents do not mention HOAs, so check your title report or CC&Rs to see whether your home is in one. Where an association exists, its job is the common area its recorded documents give it, such as private landscaping, walls, pools or private streets. The city’s three charges pay for the public side, and owners handle their own lots and mow strips.
A board that keeps those lines clear avoids paying twice for the same landscaping, and avoids enforcement fights over strips the city has already told owners how to plant.
What to do about it: HOA Rules and Enforcing Violations and How to Minimize Homeowners Association Liability.
Is this a lot for a volunteer board to track?
City districts, state law and your own documents all change, and someone has to keep up. If your Spring Lake board is deciding between managing itself and hiring help, start with Self-Managed vs. Professional HOA Management, or tell us about your community and we will send you options from affiliated management companies.
Compare HOA management optionsQuick answers
Questions Spring Lake board members ask
Is the Mello-Roos tax the same as HOA dues?
No. It is a city special tax on the property tax bill that repays bonds for roads, water, sewer and drainage. HOA dues pay for what your association owns.
Does the Mello-Roos pay for our parks?
No. The city says developer fees built the Spring Lake parks, and the landscaping and lighting district pays to maintain the neighborhood parks.
Does the Mello-Roos pay for schools?
No. The city says schools are not part of the district. The Woodland Joint Unified School District collects developer fees for schools.
Can an owner pay off the Mello-Roos?
Yes, with a one-time prepayment. City Finance can calculate the amount.
Who mows the strip in front of my house?
The owner of the home that fronts or sides onto it, under the Spring Lake Specific Plan. Owners may convert it to low-water planting within the city’s limits.
Who maintains the parkways along the big roads?
The city, through the Spring Lake Landscaping and Lighting District, for parkways along arterial and collector roads. Check your recorded maps before assuming any of it belongs to the association.
Calendar
A Spring Lake board’s year
The dates below follow the agencies’ own programs. The maintenance items are general good practice, not legal requirements.
Keep the year on track: use the Board Meeting Checklist and the Annual HOA Budget Checklist.
Who to call
Spring Lake contacts for HOA boards
Woodland City Hall is at 300 First Street.
| Office | Phone | Use it for |
|---|---|---|
| City Hall main line | (530) 661-5800 | Spring Lake Specific Plan questions |
| Finance | (530) 661-5831 | Mello-Roos and district charges, prepayment |
| Planning | (530) 661-5913 | Zoning and land use |
| Public Works | (530) 661-5962 | Street trees, streets and drainage |
| Urban Forestry (Community Services) | (530) 661-2000 | Tree review forms |
| Code Compliance | (530) 661-5826 | Yard parking and nuisances |
| Yolo County Tax Collector | (530) 666-8625 | Property tax bills |
Keep going
Where to go next on How2HOA
Sources for this guide
These sources open in a new tab.
City of Woodland: Spring Lake Specific Plan; Spring Lake fees and assessments FAQ; Spring Lake Landscaping and Lighting District engineer’s report, 2023-24; Spring Lake water-wise mow strip guidance; residential tree removal and maintenance; Municipal Code chapter 12.48, trees; rebates; department directory.
Other: Yolo County property tax FAQ.
California law: Civil Code section 4735; AB 1572 (2023).
Professional management
Thinking about management help?
Tell us about your community and we will send you options from affiliated management companies.
Compare HOA management optionsBrowse all HOA topicsThis page is general educational information, not legal, financial or insurance advice. City ordinances, district charges and state law change, and your association’s governing documents control many of these questions, so check the current rules and talk with your association’s attorney or another qualified professional about your situation.