(1) Each city may in its charter provide:

    (a) For assessing and reassessing the costs, or a portion of the costs, of a public improvement to a special district.

    (b) For assessing the cost, or a portion of the costs, of installing a boulevard lighting system on a street upon the lands abutting the street. A city shall not establish a special assessment district for a boulevard lighting system if the district includes the entire city, unless the special assessments against the real property within the district are levied on other than an ad valorem basis.

    (2) As used in this section:

    (a) “Boulevard lighting system” means any design or method of providing light to a street.

    (b) “Cost” includes necessary condemnation cost and necessary expenses incurred for engineering, financial, legal, or administrative services; operation and maintenance of a boulevard lighting system, whether that service is provided directly by the city or is provided by an investor-owned utility; and other services of a similar kind involved in the making and financing of the improvement and in the levying and collecting of the special assessments for the improvement. If the service is rendered by city employees, the city may include the fair and reasonable cost of rendering the service. The inclusion of a cost specified in this subdivision as part of the cost of an improvement for which special assessments have been levied before the effective date of the 1987 amendatory act amending this section is validated.

    (c) “Street” means a public avenue, street, highway, road, path, boulevard, or alley or other access used for travel by the public.