A divided Commissioners Court approved the reorganization of three special taxing districts and formed a new district in the eastern part of the county, with that region’s commissioner, Hugh Coleman, leading the charge against the changes.

Commissioners approved, in a 4-1 vote, changes to Denton County Municipal Utility District Nos. 4 and 5, which are near Oak Point and are partly built.

They voted 3-2 in favor of changes to the Oak Point Water Control and Improvement District No. 4, which developers expect will include 890 homes.

The developers said they needed the changes to pay for roads inside the developments and needed the court’s approval to advance special legislation related to them.

Each project has its own bill pending in the Texas Legislature.

Commissioners also established the Denton County Municipal Utility District No. 8, near Little Elm, on a 3-2 vote. Plans for this district are in the early stages.

Commissioner Bobbie Mitchell joined Coleman in voting against the last two measures.

Representatives from the city of Oak Point and developers of two districts in that city’s extraterritorial jurisdiction were the first at bat Tuesday morning, trying to get the court’s approval for the changes.

Coleman said he was concerned that the changes to one of the districts, Water Control and Improvement District 4, would simply make it easier for the owners to sell the property.

“You haven’t even turned any dirt yet,” Coleman said.

But Coleman acknowledged that developer Philip Duncan had pledged not to sell the property.

County Judge Mary Horn said in an interview after the meeting that there will be a lot more of these districts in the future, despite the complaints that county and city leaders hear about the tax rates.

Many special districts tax about $1 per $100 valuation to reimburse the developer for the tax-free bonds used to finance the roads, and water and sewer lines.

“You can’t blame them for getting creative,” Horn said.

Coleman, who took office in January, said he went to a land development class “boot camp” at the University of Texas to get educated. In limited cases, special districts help get water and sewer to some areas, he said, but he couldn’t understand why the county continues to approve districts that add another layer of government and taxation on homeowners.

Commissioner Ron Marchant agreed that the special districts create problems for law enforcement, having heard from residents in Castle Hills who cannot get satisfaction on nuisance complaints. Commissioner Andy Eads agreed that special districts were ultimately the county’s responsibility, but recommended that the commissioners have a separate, philosophical discussion about them at another time.

The commissioners agreed to table the creation of the East Denton County Municipal Utility District No. 1 because of a new dispute over whether the proposed development was in Prosper’s extraterritorial jurisdiction.

PEGGY HEINKEL-WOLFE can be reached at 940-566-6881. Her e-mail address is pheinkel-wolfe@dentonrc.com .