San Mateo Eichlers / Recreation District
County Service Area 1 · Formed 24 September 1957
Not an HOA. No dues.
This one costs people money when they get it wrong, in both directions — buyers budgeting for dues that do not exist, and sellers unable to answer a straightforward question about what the district is. The Highlands Recreation District is a unit of local government with an elected board, funded from property tax. It is not a homeowners association and it cannot behave like one.
- What it is
- A government special district — County Service Area 1
- Formed
- 24 September 1957, under California's Community Services District law (Gov. Code §61000 et seq.)
- Governed by
- A five-member elected board, four-year terms, meeting the second Tuesday monthly
- Funded by
- Property taxes, programme fees and special purpose grants
- HOA dues
- None. It is not an HOA.
- Who pays in
- "Your street address determines whether you pay a portion of your property tax to support the District"
- Address
- 1851 Lexington Avenue, San Mateo
- Service area
- 1.88 sq mi, reaching into San Mateo, Burlingame, Belmont, San Carlos and Hillsborough
What it runs
More than people expect.
- Swimming pool — built 1958 — plus a kiddie pool
- Community and recreation centre, with meeting and event rooms
- Gymnasium
- Tennis and pickleball courts
- Playground
- A licensed early education centre, infants through age twelve
- A sheriff's substation
- 3.5-acre site plus 42 acres of managed open space, acquired in the 1980s
Access is fee-based rather than dues-based. The fitness centre is $2 per visit for residents and free for Highlands seniors; tennis court keys and fitness membership are residents-only; swim punch cards are available to residents and non-residents alike.
The District won the Special District Leadership Foundation's Transparency Certificate of Excellence in 2018, which is a small thing but a real one — it means the meeting agendas and minutes are actually published.
The other organisation
And this is where people get confused.
There is a second body, with a similar-sounding name and a completely different character: the Highlands Community Association.
It is voluntary. Its stated purpose is to "promote the general welfare of all the residents and property owners in matters of community interest, property and personal rights," organised with one vote per residence and area representatives. It publishes The Highlands Lowdown, distributed free to every resident and running for roughly sixty years. It runs the July 3–4 fireworks and carnival, held annually since the late 1950s.
And per Eichler Network, only about 48% of residents pay its dues — which is exactly what you would expect of a voluntary association and exactly what you would not expect of an HOA.
CC&Rs do exist on the tract. Per Eichler Network, they have gone unused for architectural control for at least thirty years. Neither body is reviewing your neighbour's plans, and neither one is going to stop a second storey. The full preservation picture →
The District's exact share of the property tax levy, its annual budget and the per-parcel amount are not published on its website, and the recruitment brochure that would contain budget figures was not retrievable. Board minutes are the place to find them, and the board meets the second Tuesday of each month.
If you want the number for a specific address, the property tax bill itself will show the allocation. We are not going to publish an estimate and let it get quoted back at us. [Exact tax share — to be pulled from board minutes]
Talk to us
Want the real carrying cost on a specific house?
Property tax including the district allocation, the insurance picture on a post-and-beam house with a radiant slab, and what the rec centre actually costs a family to use. We will put it in one page for you.