2025.03.17 CC Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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Council Meeting Minutes for March 17, 2025 Page 2 of 8 Washington County Assessors Update - Appraisers Dan Squyres and Tyson Terry Washington County Residential Property Appraiser Tyson Terry provided the Council with an update on the County and Hugo property assessments in preparation for the Local Board of Appeals and Adjustments meeting on April 3, 2025. He discussed the assessment year timeline, the color coding of tax statements, and the quintile review mandated by Minnesota law for assessing properties. There will be about 1,500 property reviews to complete this year. He said the goal of an assessor is to equalize values and ensure they are fair and reasonable. He noted that April 3 is the time for Hugo property owners to appeal their proposed taxable value for 2026. There were 220 “arm’s length” residential sales in 2024. Tyson explained these were sales that took place in a competitive and open market, helping to determine the sales ratio and adjust values accordingly. The historical average sales price had increased to $405,100 from $300,311 over the past five years. While the volume of residential sales has declined, the average sales price has remained stable. Tyson reported that, according to the Minnesota Realtors Association, the median sales price of a single-family home in Hugo was $493,145, which was close to the Washington County average and about $75,000 higher than in the Twin Cities. The number of days on the market dropped significantly when interest rates were low last year. Hugo properties were on the market for an average of 30 days. Over the past five years, the price paid for homes had on average not been below 100% of the asking price. Lender-mediated sales have declined across the county. A large portion of recent sales in Hugo consisted of newly constructed homes. There were 170 new construction starts in Hugo in the past year, which was more than most cities except Cottage Grove and Woodbury. Countywide, there were 1,122 new construction starts, with Hugo accounting for 14% of them. Commercial sales had declined over the past two years. He provided information on median home values, stating that they increased by 5% from last year and are now equal to the 2023 value of $408,700. Tyson reviewed the historical class adjustments, pointing out that the residential class adjustment decreased by 4% last year and increased by 3.4% this year. He said he believed the County had a solid grasp on values and that the market is stable. He concluded his report by comparing closed sales data from the past three years, which showed that the Twin Cities average declined by 31.8%, while Hugo saw a decrease of 19.1%. This indicated that Hugo did not experience as significant a decline as other cities. Over the past year, Hugo saw a 21.5% increase in closed sales, indicating that people were moving to the city. Hugo Fire Department Annual Report – Fire Chief Jim Compton, Jr. Fire Chief Jim Compton presented the Hugo Fire Department 2024 Annual Report. He began by providing a breakdown of the 27 total staff positions, stating that there was a vacant lieutenant position. The department responded to 411 calls in 2024, with 23 of them being mutual aid calls. There were 56 alarm calls, which was a reduction compared to 2023, and he attributed it to the reclassification of gas leaks and carbon monoxide issues. There were 125 fire and service calls last year that resulted in $85.6 million in fire losses. Eleven of those calls were for structure fires in Hugo. This was the fifth year assisting M Health Fairview with major medical calls and lift assists, and the department responded to 178 medical