HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC BOARD OF REVIEW MINUTES 04102001 Meeting Sheet
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Box: 36
Folder: CC MINUTES AND AGENDAS 2001
Document: CC MINUTES 04102001
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1 CITY OF ST. ANTHONY
BOARD OF REVIEW MEETING MINUTES
3 April 10, 2001
4 I. CALL TO ORDER.
5 Mayor Cavanaugh called the meeting to order at 7:03 p.m.
6 II. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE.
7 Mayor Cavanaugh invited the Council and audience to join in the Pledge of Allegiance.
8 III. ROLL CALL.
9 Councilmembers present: Mayor Cavanaugh; Councilmembers Sparks,Thuesen, and Horst.
10 Councilmember absent: Councilmember Hodson.
11 Also present: City Attorney Jerome Gilligan.
12 IV. DISCUSSION OF PROPERTY VALUATION IN ST. ANTHONY.
13 Mayor Cavanaugh explained the process for the Board of Review and that following the City
14 hearing, it moves on to the County. He noted the attendance of Tamara Doolittle,Hennepin
15 County Assessor.
16 Ms. Doolittle stated the item under discussion is the 2001 market values. She introduced Larry
Miller and Kelly Baillet also of the County Auditor's Office. She advised of their method of
41 assessing for St. Anthony and other cities within Hennepin County. Ms. Doolittle reviewed the
19 Hennepin County median sales ratio for past and present years and stated they expect to see a lot
20 of growth in St. Anthony next year also. She explained the calculations used and stated the
21 valuations in St. Anthony meets the State and County requirement. Ms. Doolittle stated they
22 received approximately 60 calls and reviewed 12 properties. If the property owner is not satisfied
23 with the review or if their property has not been reviewed, they can appear before the St.
24 Anthony Board of Review. If the property owner does not feel it represents the fair market
25 value, the Local Board of Review is an opportunity to appear before the City. She noted the
26 Local Board of Review must convene within 20 days or by Sunday, April 29th. Ms. Doolittle
27 advised that the reconvened meeting is only to discuss appeals, not to address new appeals. The
28 next step in the process is the County Board of Equalization which will meet June 18th. The
29 final option in the appeal process is to the Minnesota Tax Court.
30 An unidentified resident stated she lives in St. Anthony but is within Ramsey County and was
31 told to come here tonight.
32 Mayor Cavanaugh stated St. Anthony does not consider Ramsey County valuations and their
33 process would be different than that used in Hennepin County.
34 Larry Miller, Hennepin County, explained that Ramsey County does all the assessing for Ramsey
35 County cities and have an open book meeting for each of those cities.
QMayor Cavanaugh invited residents to speak.
Board of Review Meeting Minutes
• April 10, 2001
Page 2
1 Julie Osipenko, 3417 Everest Street, stated she believes the evaluation of her property is too
2 high.
3 Ms. Doolittle stated the increase of Ms. Osipenko's property was average. She advised that the
4 property is a 1,250 square foot rambler at $181,000. Hennepin County reviewed the property in
5 1997 so the records should be accurate. Ms. Doolittle reported there were several sales of similar
6 sized properties and she believes the value looks reasonable but may be on the high side. She
7 stated if Ms. Osipenko would like them to walk through the property, she would be happy to do
8 so. She stated homes of similar sizes are selling a little lower but Ms. Osipenko's home has had
9 some improvements after being damaged in the tornado.
10 Ms. Osipenko stated they have made no recent improvements.
11 Ms. Doolittle stated there are sales to support the value and asked if she wants to have the
12 property reinspected.
13 Mayor Cavanaugh stated based on the information received, it appears to be a fair appraisal.
14 However, the Assessor will visit the house if Ms. Osipenko so requests.
65 Ms. Osipenko stated she thinks if they walk through the house, they will raise the value even
, higher.
17 Mayor Cavanaugh explained the valuation is based on what other similar houses in St. Anthony
18 are selling for.
19 Ms. Osipenko stated they have an old furnace, no air conditioner, and since 1985 they have made
20 no improvements. She stated she has no idea what she could sell the house for and has no plans
21 to sell it. Ms. Osipenko reviewed the past valuations of her property.
22 Mayor Cavanaugh stated based on the information he has received, he supports the valuation but
23 the Assessor has indicated a willingness to look at the house. He again asked Ms. Osipenko if
24 she would like the house reinspected.
25 Councilmember Sparks asked Ms. Doolittle if she feels the valuation is a little high.
26 Ms. Doolittle stated they reviewed two similar sales. She reviewed the particulars of those sales
27 and square footages, stating they support the valuation of$180,000. She stated she understands
28 Ms. Osipenko is reluctant to have someone walk through her property, however, she believes it
29 would be beneficial to review the property.
30 Mayor Cavanaugh stated the consensus of the Board of Review is to ask the Assessor to visit the
Wproperty.
1
Board of Review Meeting Minutes
• Apri 1 10, 2001
Page 3
1 Councilmember Horst agreed and stated if there is validity to Ms. Osipenko's claim, the
2 Assessor will discover that from an inspection. He explained that homes in St. Anthony are
3 increasing in value and when they sell, they will realize the increase.
4 Mayor Cavanaugh noted that Ms. Osipenko's income is probably not increasing at the same rate
5 as the valuation increases. He noted this forces the elderly who live on a fixed income out of
6 their homes. He reviewed the work of the Legislature to revise the tax laws to address that
7 problem.
8 Ms. Doolittle explained the property tax refund program and encouraged Ms. Osipenko to
9 research that option since she may be eligible. Ms. Doolittle explained that residential taxes
10 cannot increase by more than 8% in a given year.
11 Anthony Kazor, 3008 33rd Avenue NE, stated he believes his home should have a limited value
12 of$180,000 and the estimated market value reduced from $204,000 to $200,000. He suggested
13 that if he sold his home for$200,000 he would have to pay someone $14,000 to sell it so the
14 value would be$186,000. Mr. Kazor stated last year his property was increased to$178,000. He
15 stated he has made no improvements to his property since 1995 unless it was a hazard so some
4 things are deteriorating like the sidewalk, deck, and roof which are 22 years old. He stated he
would also have to put on new roof if he sold it. He noted that the seniors are having problems
18 and so are others who work and have children. Mr. Kazor stated he thinks the value should be at
19 $180,000. He advised that his house is unique since it is on 33rd Avenue which is not a quiet
20 area. Also, the tennis courts create light in his house which sometimes disturbs his sleep until
21 they are shut off.
22 Mayor Cavanaugh asked about the percentage of increase. Ms. Doolittle stated the valuation was
23 $173,000 last year and$200,000 in 2001. The average increase is 16%.
24 Mr. Kazor stated his concern is the limited market value since that is what he pays taxes on. He
25 stated he bought in 1995 for$168,000, however, the house has been on the market for over a year
26 so he thinks he paid too much when he purchased it.
27 Ms. Doolittle stated she looked at this property and compared it to other sales. The house is a
28 1,400 square foot split entry and since there are not many of those, the sales comparison was to
29 split level properties. Ms. Doolittle stated Mr. Kazor's home is superior to those comparisons.
30 She advised of other similar home sales and stated they did take deterioration into consideration.
31 She stated she believes this is a fair valuation as the increase has been less than 20% since the
32 purchase price in 1994.
33 In response to Councilmember Sparks, Ms. Doolittle explained how they take busy streets into
0 consideration.
Board of Review Meeting Minutes
April 10, 2001
• Page 4
1 Councilmember Horst asked if they take other things into account. Ms. Doolittle stated they look
2 at the overall valuation to find a number representative and account for tennis court lights by land
3 value of the property. They then take additional depreciation for other economical influences.
4 Councilmember Horst stated he understands this situation and was shocked at the valuation of
5 his own property. He stated he believes home values are high in St. Anthony but homes are
6 selling for more.
7 Councilmember Thuesen stated he went through a home sale/purchase recently and was
8 pleasantly surprised about what he sold his home for but to stay in St. Anthony, you have to
9 expect to pay more for a home. He stated that he finds an increase of 20% since his purchase to
10 be reasonable.
11 Motion by Horst to take no action on 3008 33rd Avenue NE.
12 Motion carried unanimously.
13 Mayor Cavanaugh noted it was mentioned that a property owner is allowing his home to
4 deteriorate to keep the value down. However, the City is looking at an enforcement policy to
assure the housing stock is maintained. He asked if the County lets someone depreciate a
16 $200,000 house.
17 Ms. Doolittle stated they look at what the house would sell for, not the owner's intention. She
18 stated it would be unusual for a property owner to allow their property to depreciate in an attempt
19 to keep property taxes down. However, she understands the frustration expressed by some
20 property owners.
21 Ms. Doolittle advised that the Board of Review meeting can be reconvened or the Council can
22 rely on the County's determination.
23 Council consensus was reached to rely on the County's determination.
24 IV. ADJOURNMENT.
25 Motion by Thuesen to adjourn the meeting at 7:41 p.m.
26 Motion carried unanimously.
27 Respectfully submitted,
28 Carla Wirth
29 TimeSaver Off Site Secretarial, Inc.
So
Mayo
32 ATTEST: , City Clerk