The Ave Maria Stewardship Community District was created by Special Act of the Florida Legislature and became effective June 17, 2004, pursuant to Chapter 189 of the Florida Statutes. As a special-purpose local government, the District was established to plan, finance, construct, operate, and maintain public infrastructure within the community.
Community Development Districts, or CDDs, are built around a straightforward concept: infrastructure is financed through long-term bonds, and those costs are repaid over time through assessments placed on property owners. Those assessments generally include two components: debt service, which pays down the bonds used to build the infrastructure, and operations and maintenance, which covers the ongoing upkeep of the community.
This structure explains how the system functions. What it does not do, by itself, is show how future infrastructure replacement obligations are planned or funded over time.
That distinction matters.
Understanding a CDD requires more than knowing how assessments are calculated. It requires connecting the financial documents to the actual scope and lifecycle of the infrastructure they support. That is where document-to-data validation becomes critical, linking what is shown in budgets and reports to the real-world obligations of roads, drainage systems, utilities, and shared assets.
Based on the 2024 Financial Report and the 2024/2025 Budget, the District’s governmental fund balances are divided into three primary categories. As of September 30, 2024, total governmental fund balances were $13,670,470, including $5,777,140 restricted to debt service, $7,339,707 restricted for capital projects, and $553,623 classified as unassigned.
These distinctions are important. Funds restricted to debt service are dedicated to bond-related payments and cannot be used for other purposes. Capital project funds are generally tied to specific infrastructure purposes. The unassigned portion represents the most flexible funding available for general use.
The financial reports also reflect bond-related reserve accounts and other earmarked balances within the debt service funds. However, the documents reviewed do not clearly identify a single reserve intended to cover the full scope of long-term infrastructure replacement obligations.
Because most governmental funds are restricted, the amount of flexible cash available for large or unexpected capital needs is limited. In those situations, any funding response would likely require action by the Board of Supervisors and may involve assessment adjustments, reallocation of funds, or other financing mechanisms.
None of this is unusual. It reflects how these districts are designed to operate.
Most people hear the word “reserves” and assume it means money set aside for future repairs. In Community Development Districts, that assumption can be misleading because the term may refer to two very different things.
The first is a debt service reserve. This is a bond-related safety fund designed to protect bond payments if collections come up short. It is typically held by a trustee and exists to help ensure bondholders are paid on time. It is not intended for infrastructure repairs and generally cannot be used for that purpose.
The second is what most homeowners think of as a reserve: a replacement or capital reserve. This type of fund is intended to cover major repairs or replacements, such as roads, drainage systems, and other long-term infrastructure. These are not hypothetical costs; they are expected long-term obligations tied to the useful life of the community’s assets.
Understanding the difference between these two concepts is critical. Although both may be called “reserves,” they serve entirely different purposes.
In many financial reports and audits, references to reserves appear in the context of debt service requirements. Those references are tied to bond indentures and relate to maintaining required balances for debt repayment. What is often less clear is whether a separate, lifecycle-based reserve strategy exists for the eventual replacement of infrastructure.
That distinction matters when reviewing assessment structures. A community may show a consistent assessment line item labeled “reserve,” but that does not necessarily mean it is aligned with long-term capital replacement needs. Infrastructure does not age evenly, and its replacement costs can be substantial.
Without a clearly defined replacement reserve tied to those long-term realities, funding future obligations becomes a matter of timing and board decision-making rather than planned capital stewardship. In those situations, major repairs or replacements may require board action, assessment adjustments, or additional financing.
This is not unusual. It reflects how many CDDs are structured. The key is understanding what is being funded—and what is not.
The terminology may be similar, but the function is not. A debt service reserve protects the financing structure. A capital reserve supports the infrastructure itself. Clarity comes from reviewing how those documents connect to the long-term reality of the community.
Mike – Ave Advocate Founder