1. Each district organized under this chapter shall be a body corporate and politic, with the name and style under which it was organized, and by that name and style may sue and be sued, contract and be contracted with, acquire and hold real and personal property necessary for corporate purposes, adopt a corporate seal and alter the same at pleasure, and exercise all the powers conferred in this chapter.

Terms Used In Iowa Code 358C.12

  • Board: means the board of trustees of a real estate improvement district. See Iowa Code 358C.1
  • Construction: includes materials, labor, acts, operations, and services necessary to complete a public improvement. See Iowa Code 358C.1
  • Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
  • District: means a real estate improvement district as created in this chapter. See Iowa Code 358C.1
  • Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
  • property: includes personal and real property. See Iowa Code 4.1
  • Public improvement: includes the principal structures, works, component parts, and accessories of the facilities or systems specified in section 358C. See Iowa Code 358C.1
  • seal: shall include an impression upon the paper alone, or upon wax, a wafer affixed to the paper, or an official stamp of a notarial officer as provided in chapter 9B. See Iowa Code 4.1
  • state: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories, and the words "United States" may include the said district and territories. See Iowa Code 4.1
 2. All courts of this state shall take judicial notice of the existence of real estate improvement districts organized under this chapter.
 3. A district shall not own or hold land in excess of ten acres unless the land is actually used for a public purpose within three years of its acquisition. A district which owns or holds land in excess of ten acres for more than three years without devoting it to a public purpose as provided in this chapter shall divest itself of the land by public auction to the highest bidder.
 4. A district may acquire by purchase, condemnation, or gift, real or personal property, right-of-way, and easement within or without its corporate limits necessary for its corporate purposes specified in section 358C.4.
 5. If the board of trustees of the district decide to make a public improvement pursuant to this chapter which requires that private property be taken or damaged, the board may exercise the power of eminent domain. The procedure to condemn property shall be exercised in the manner provided in chapter 6B.
 6. A district shall comply with all city building and use codes for owner-occupied residential housing and shall comply with all city design and construction standards for the public improvements authorized in section 358C.4.
 7. A district shall not incorporate as a city if all or the major part of the district is within two miles of the boundaries of a city at the time the district is approved.
 8. The provisions of chapters 21 and 22 applicable to cities, counties, and school districts apply to the district. The records of the district are subject to audit pursuant to section 11.6.