As we’ve elsewhere demonstrated, IVGID is a limited purpose special district. Which doesn’t mean it’s not a “governmental subdivision” nor 100% “public.” Rather, it means that it can’t exercise the same types of general municipal police powers¹ other local governments can exercise². Since this reality doesn’t fit well with naysayers, they describe the District as something far different. For instance,

Quasi-Public: Naysayers want you to believe that not only does IVGID have general municipal police powers¹, it it has more! In other words, powers no other local government does because we’re only “quasi-public.” Without providing a definition for quasi public³, they assert we can engage in “for profit” commercial business enterprises rather than simply furnishing facilities and services to the inhabitants of Incline Village and Crystal Bay and the residents of the State of Nevada. And since we can engage in those enterprises, we can do everything that every other privately owned commercial business enterprise can do. Whatever that entails.

And IVGID does nothing to dispel this false narrative. One local newspaper, Moonshine Ink, has asked the question What does IVGID mean by “quasi-public?”?

“If it means ‘not exactly public,’ then the term is a gross exaggeration when it comes to IVGID’s convoluted finances. Determining how much money each venue/program loses is impossible. That should be readily available public information, but since IVGID separated out its debt service and capital expenses when it abandoned enterprise funds, it’s like trying to budget for your household expenses and forgetting about the mortgage and the car payments (IVGID’s idea of transparency). IVGID calling itself a quasi-public agency is an outright lie. It is a public agency; a political subdivision of the state of Nevada subject to the same ethics, public records, and purchasing laws as other local governments. (Apparently) someone took the phrase ‘quasi-municipal corporation’ from NRS 318 and mistakenly translated that to quasi-public. IVGID calls itself ‘quasi-public’ to convince us it can ignore laws designed to protect the public interest.”

At the District’s September 24, 2024 Town Hall, the IVGID Board was expressly asked what the term “quasi-public” means, and where in the NRS is it described? The answer given was it is nowhere described.

Common Interest Community aka HOA: Candidate for trustee Nick Homan said it best:

My “view (is) that our recreational venues are held for the common interest of the community, and as such, that those venues and other assets owned and managed by IVGID are made available primarily for the benefit of the community as a whole.  This involves a ‘portfolio’ approach to managing our recreational facilities – one that seeks to operate the recreational venues as a mutually reliant and sustaining set of venues at the total District level.”

In Nevada the term “common interest community” is defined at NRS 116.021(1):

“Common-interest community means real estate described in a declaration with respect to which a person, by virtue of the person’s ownership of a unit, is obligated to pay for a share of real estate taxes, insurance premiums, maintenance or improvement of, or services or other expenses related to, common elements, other units or other real estate described in that declaration.”

This is why many people in our community refer to IVGID as an HOA.

Conclusion:

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1. Namely the power to provide for the health, safety and general welfare of its inhabitants.
2. See our How The Powers of a GID Differ From Other Local Governments discussion.
3. One dictionary describes the term as “having some public and some private features, for example providing public services but being privately owned or run.”