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Hugo City Council Meeting Minutes for April 6, 2020 <br />Page 2 of 6 <br />with the City Clerk. The City was following public <br />have a health professional staff. The Stay at Home Order was being followed with most staff <br />working remotely. Public Works crews were working in shifts independently as much as <br />ted many of the same changes. Some planning <br />applicants had put their projects on hold. Building permit applications were still being accepted, <br />and inspections were being done with modifications. The compost site was open and being <br />operated by Washington County, but no food waste was being accepted. Also, the Washington <br />County Library Kiosk was partially opened after undergoing repairs unrelated to the virus. <br />Construction projects that had been initiated were continuing, such as the water tower project and <br />Goodview Avenue street project. Projects not yet begun may be slowed down. The HBA had <br />information on small business loan programs. The County Board would be meeting to talk about <br />modifying the property tax payment requirement to waive late fees and penalties. <br /> <br />Mayor Weidt clarified that playground were permitt <br />can be closed by the cities. The City of Hugo chose to keep them open and asked that parents <br />putting up signs and would monitor the playgrounds and make changes if necessary. The Mayor <br />stated he had not seen a lot of activity so far, and closing them could be an enforcement issue. <br /> <br />Miron made motion, Klein seconded, <br />what public facilities are open or closed unless directed otherwise by the Mayor through <br />emergency actions or by vote of the Council. <br /> <br />. Motion carried. <br /> <br />Washington County Assessor Dan Squyres was in attendance remotely to provide information on <br />Hugo and answer questions from the Council in <br />preparation for the Board of Appeals and Adjustments meeting on April 9, 2020. Dan shared <br />information on work done by the County on property reviews and establishment of market values. <br />Properties are reviewed every five years, and one-fifth of the properties are looked at every year. <br />Each year, there are reassessments based primarily on sales. This year, the county will review <br />approximately 1,400 parcels. Last year, 26,420 parcels were reviewed county-wide. There were <br />110 new homes constructed in 2019, slightly down from 124 in 2018. Arms- length sales <br />(willing seller and willing buyer) are used to establish market value. There were 428 sales and <br />337 arms-length transactions. There were 91 foreclosure sales county-wide, which was not a big <br />factor in the market. The median home value was $290,000, up 4.1% from last year. County <br />Commercial values increased significantly <br />throughout the metro area at 5.9%. Apartments increased at 4.7%, and agriculture classified <br />properties had increased 6.3%. He reviewed the appeals process saying tax statements were <br />mailed in March. He had received 34 appeal calls, and was able to handle all but two. He stated <br />they would likely be appealing to the Local Board. <br /> <br />Bear encouraged anyone who had a question on their classification or value to first contact the <br />County Assessor. There was an option to provide a written appeal or contact the City to make <br /> <br />