Nevada County, Calif., likely to miss 2d scheduled payment this year.

LOS ANGELES -- For the second time this year, Nevada County, Calif., is expected to miss a scheduled payment to holders of Mello-Roos bonds issued by the county to fund construction of the Wildwood Estates subdivision.

"Absent a payment of the special property taxes, the county will not have sufficient funds to make the Sept. 1, 1994, payment" to bondholders, the county said in a press release issued last Friday. The interest-only payment totals $206,090.

Because of a lack of funds, the county last March 1 also missed making a $370,017 payment. The county first tapped its debt service reserve fund in March 1993. The reserve fund has a balance of $71,970, but officials have decided not to draw down that amount toward the required September payment.

The missed payments reflect continuing problems with special tax delinquencies in Community Facilities District No. 1990-1. A portion of bond proceeds funded roads and various utility improvements for a planned residential development.

The original financing raised $9.07 million. In February, the county conducted a tender offer for a portion of unspent bond proceeds. Following the offer, $4.92 million of the original bond proceeds were left outstanding.

The last four installments of special tax payments have been missed. The special taxes secure the bonds and are the sole source of payments for them. Special tax delinquencies totaled $2.17 million as of July 1, 1994.

"At this time the county has approximately $401,455 remaining from the original sale of the bonds which could be used to call bonds from consenting bondholders," the release said. "However, the county has deferred making any such call until the delinquent special property taxes are paid."

Title to the property earlier this year was transferred to Sacramento-based First Commercial Bank after the previous owner, developer Wildwood Estates Inc., defaulted on a private construction loan with the bank.

The press release said the county is pursuing a foreclosure action . against the bank. A trial is scheduled for Sept. 8.

The county also has held several meetings with First Commercial Bank to reach agreement concerning a restructuring of the special taxes, the release said. If such a plan is developed, the county plans to submit the plan to bondholders for their approval, the release said.

In a related development, a Marks-Roos bond study by the California Debt Advisory Commission is looking into why some of the troubled Nevada County Mello-Roos bonds ended up in the possession of two south-central California cities, Stephen Shea, the commission's director of policy research, said yesterday.

In 1989, the two cities, Wascoe and Avehal, established public finance authorities that "set up bond pools through the Marks-Roos pooling act," Shea said.

A portion of each city's Marks-Roos pool proceeds was used to purchase some of the Nevada County Mello-Roos bonds, and some Mello-Roos bonds issued by Ione, Calif., Shea said. tone previously has dipped into its reserve fund to make payments to holders of its Mello-Roos bonds.

"We are concerned about the suitability of these [Mello-Roos] investments for these bond pools, and whether corrective legislation is needed to address these problems," Shea said.

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