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1-11-2007 By JIM AUSTIN Editor Village Assessor Al Keck said last week the impact notices property owners have been expecting will be delayed until later this month. Keck said they needed the extra time to "polish up the values." This fall, the village entered into an agreement with the town of Otsego to be a part its reval process in an attempt to avoid duplication of effort, and to make sure the two tax rolls were consistent; and town of Otsego Assessor Marie Walters said an additional couple of weeks was needed to tweak the numbers. "So we're sure of every value," she said. "We want to give them the best product and that's what we're going to do." Walters said that earlier in the process, they had set a timeline for the reval, but it was hard to anticipate exactly how long it would take to get it completed. "The village is in great shape," she said. Keck said the values for village property in the town of Middlefield are complete, but that he still wants to go back over the values for commercial properties in the village. Walters said last week she anticipates the impact notices will be mailed during the week of Jan. 21-25, if not earlier. Although the village values are essentially completed, Walters said it is important to have the town's values done before the notices are sent out. "It's best if the town values are finished because it gives a better picture of the change in town taxes," she said. The impact notices include the prior assessment, the new assessed value for the property and the impact the new assessment would have on taxes. The tax impact is based on the previous year's budget. Village property owners who question their new assessment may schedule an informal meeting with Keck in an attempt to resolve any issues without having to go through the formal grievance procedure. If differences cannot be resolved, owners may file a formal grievance with the board of trustees, which also acts as the board of assessment review on the annual Grievance Day on Feb. 19. The final village tax roll will be filed April 1. Village tax bills, which go out in June, will be based on the new assessments. |
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