MINUTES LOCAL BOARD OF EQUALIZATION AND REVIEW CITY OF LINDSTROM APRIL 15th, 2007 7:00 P.M. CALL TO ORDER: Mayor Carlson called the meeting to order at 7:03 p.m. A Quorum and Trained members of the Board were present. CALL OF ROLL: Those Present: Others Present: Mayor Carlson, Council members, Wishy, Singer, Flug, Administrative Assistant Barb Barnes, Chisago County Assistant Assessor Patrick Poshek, Chisago County Assessor Larry Sandberg Dave & Cathie Danielson, Richard Berget (left early), Bonne Hau, Michael Hachnel. Frances Severson, Dan Gregg, Kirk Bergland, Marlin and Darlene Melquist, written Appeals were submitted by Marlene Messin and Jacquelin Allen BUSINESS: 1. Local Board of Equalization and Review Patrick Poschek, of the Chisago County Assessor s Office, stated this is the Local Board of Review for the City of Lindstrom, regarding the January 2, 2008 Valuation and Classification. Tonight s meeting is not about taxes payable in 2008. We can explain the Limited Market Value, but it is not something that they can adjust or control. It is a result of the difference between last years Taxable, and this years Estimated, which is set by the State Law. Only the Estimated Market Value and Classification can be discussed at this meeting tonight. 1
Persons will be talked with one on one, and Chisago County Assessor Larry Sandberg will be explaining what he has done this year in the Lindstrom area. Chisago County Assessor Poschek stated he worked on the Commercial areas. We also need to recognize if there is anyone on the Board who has a spouse or family member appearing, or if a financial interest exists in any of the properties before them. They can still act, but the situation must be disclosed. Assessor Poschek stated they use, by State Law, a Sales corridor that is set up for (12) months, beginning October 1 st, 2006 through the end of September 2007. This window is the time period in which the sales are collected, and this tells the Assessors what they need to do for the January 2, 2008 Assessments. If you have a property where recently the sales price has been reduced, etc., it will not be used in comparison tonight. Market Value is defined as the sales price a willing Buyer and Seller agree to under normal Market conditions. Overall, the State of MN reports reflect Chisago County has done a very good job of meeting the values for the area. The following property owners addressed their concerns with the Chisago County Assessor s Office and the Lindstrom Board of Equalization and Review. Persons were allowed to voice their concerns, question the comparables used by the Assessor s Office, and present factual supporting property information for consideration and review: David & Cathie Danielson 29655 Neil Ave. 15.00803.15 The Danielsons live on lakeshosre. Their complaint was the classification of the lake property. Their lakeshore is in a small bay area, where there is no wave action and a lot of mud. It is very soft, no one can swim there, and the water depth is too shallow for boats. Even when the lake is high, it is only 5 feet deep off the end of the dock. They were requesting a change in the classification of their shoreland. 2
The Assessors refer to the map and tax information. Assessor Larry Sandberg stated this is an area located where the lakeshore transitions to the north. Chisago County Assessor Patrick Poschek reminded the Market Sales predict the Values. It does not always make sense, but is a Market Trend based on sales in the area. Assessor Sandberg scheduled a review to be readdressed at the Continuation Hearing on April 22, 2008. Richard Berget 12275 & 12550 Lake Blvd. - 15.00178.00 & 15.00094.00 Mr. Berget left the meeting prior to his name coming up on the List for Review, but was signed in and had talked with Assessor Sandberg. Sandberg stated there are some issues with the parking area of the Motel due to Hwy. 8 ROW. Based on a site review, Assessor Sandberg recommended a reduction to $224, 600. Assessor Sandberg added the second property has some foundation problems, and there are issues due to the Sewer Lines. There is only 60 feet of lakeshore, and it is very steep to the lake. It was the consensus of the Board to table this discussion to the end of the Hearing. Marlin Melquist 30095 Norway Ave. 15.00750.00 Mr. Melquist stated he too had an issue with the raise in his evaluation that went up approximately $10,000. He added he is retired, and it may soon be too high for his budget to continue living in his home. He commented there are not that many persons coming to Lindstrom to buy homes right now in this market. They own two parcels; one has 64 feet of shoreline, and the second has 24 feet of shoreland. They requested to have their properties reviewed for value. Assessor Poschek stated the Legislature has the point of view that if one can afford a second or seasonal home, they feel they need to raise the values. Assessor Sandberg stated the area on South Center Lake had a number of sales during this period. He added the B Classification values did go up. Assessor Sandberg stated 3
they would have to go for quite a long way to re-classify properties around the Bay area. A review was scheduled for the Melquists. Bonnie Hau 29315 Morningside Ct. 15.00211.00 Ms. Hau stated her issue is with the quality of the shoreline. She added it is muck, she lives on a dirt road, her yard floods out all of the time due to run-off, and it is mud on one of her lots from the roadway to the lake. It is the lowest area in her neighborhood. Ms. Hau requested a review with the County regarding her evaluation. Mayor Carlson stated their have been water issues here for quite some time that the City is aware of. Assessor Sandberg scheduled a review for Ms. Hau. Michael Haehnel 12755 Lake Blvd. 15.00211.00 Mr. Haehnel addressed the Board regarding his Commercial property at 211 Park & Hwy. 8. He stated the back of the building was a rental unit at one time. Basically, the back 30 feet is condemned. The unit has not been used in a long while, and is collapsing. There is no income yielded from this. He has applied for a Demolition Permit to remove this part of the building. Assessor Poschek made arrangements to visit the site and review the evaluation. Frances Severson 13635 Norelius Ln. 15.00773.00 Ms. Severson lives on South Center Lake. She stated her values have almost doubled in the last (5) years. She has 90 feet of lakeshore on her property. Her valuation went up by $12,000 last year. She knew of other like properties that did not get an increase. Ms. Severson requested a review of her values. Assessor Sandberg stated again this is in the area of South Center Lake that showed an increase based on the Market sales. He added 4
unfortunately, in 2005, the IRS mandated the Appraisers review the Lake Values or they would come up and do it themselves. The situation was a catching up period for this area. He pulled up the property information, and stated he felt the value was there. Assessor Sandberg scheduled a review for Ms. Sandberg. Dan Gregg 30225 Norway Ave. 15.00189.10 Gregg stated he had lived on the property for almost 20 years. It was in the year 1997 that he put on an addition in the amount of $50,000. He has not put on any further updates since then. He has a large yard, but the water is marginal similar to those properties on the Bay area. He did not believe the valuation was correct. He has 400 feet of lakeshore, it is full of cattails. He has flood insurance issues, etc. He added he could not sell the property for the amount of Market Value. Assessor Sandberg scheduled a site inspection and review of the property. Kirk Bergland 13495 Norelius Ln 15.00783.00 Mr. Bergland stated he had previously talked to Assessor Bergland. He had questioned the increase in valuation of approximately $18,000.00. Bergland added Assessor Sandberg explained the situation to him. He also owns a very small strip of land which was valued at $100.00. It is now valued at $4500.00. Assessor Sandberg stated he had recommended a reduction on the small parcel. Jim Singer 29709 Neal Ave. 15.00803.11 Mr. Singer stated he also lives in the South Center Lake area. He would like to see the lake Classification reviewed also, as it is not good lakeshore. Singer stated it is a very shallow area. His valuation did go down slightly for the year 2009. Assessor Sandberg stated again, this was evaluated by Market Sales in a large area. 5
Joe Wishy 29965 Neal Ave. 15.00794.13 Mr. Wishy stated he lives in the same area as some of the residents attending the meeting. He felt his valuation went up a lot. He thought he was evaluated higher than his neighbors properties. He has not made any improvements to his property. Assessor Sandberg stated again, this is in that area of homes where they did see an increase due to the Market. Jim Singer questioned if the Assessors take into consideration that South Center Lake has been declared Impaired Waters. Wishy and Sandberg visited the area values on-line. Curt Flug 29009 Machmeier Court 15.00010.97 Mr. Flug addressed the Assessors stating he felt his neighbors were also paying less than he was. Flug visited with Assessor Sandberg reviewing neighborhood information on-line. Richard Berget Tabled to end of meeting. Discussion continued regarding the Berget properties. There is 60 feet of lakeshore on the property. Sandberg reviewed the house is in pretty rough shape. The yard area is very steep, without a stairway, etc. It is being taxed at a Non-Homestead Residential rate. Mayor Carlson stated he felt the value may be a little high, and recommended a reduction to $210,000. Board members agreed. Motion by Carlson, second by Wishy, to lower the valuation to $215,000.00. Motion carried 4-0. The Motel property was also discussed further. Assessor Poshek stated the Chisago County GIS shows a larger lot than what Mr. Berget says he actually owns. He did not know at this time if there is going to be a change. He would further review the information. Berget says the Parking area is not his. He says it is mostly ROW. If the answers are not in by the time of the Local Continuation Hearing, it will appear before the County Board. 6
Marlene Messin 30625 Olinda Trail 15.00077.00 Ms. Messin had submitted a letter of request to appeal and meet with the Assessors regarding her property that housed the Smith Metal Building. In her letter, she stated the valuation had risen from 464,300 to $742,200. She was strongly opposed to the increase as there have been no major improvements for several years for this 50+ year old property. She stated that there are many businesses that are closing due to price increases. She added they employ approximately 180 persons in the City of Lindstrom, and an increase of this magnitude may have a negative impact on this community should they have to close the doors. Assessor Poschek stated for many years, the property was valued at $14 per sq. ft. which is the same as a pole barn building. It is now valued at $23-25 per sq. ft. There are ample numbers of sold properties to justify this valuation. He felt this was a very accurate valuation, and recommended it not be reduced. Mayor Carlson stated he would hate to see the increase too high for the company to bear, see it shut down, and see this building sit vacant as there is not much need for an Industrial property in that location. He added it may sound political, but the City does need this business and Ms. Messin in our community. She has been more involved in the community, and contributes far more than anyone to this City and area. Assessor Poshek questioned at what point in time do you catch up on values? This property has not been re-evaluated for a number of years. Singer stated with such a large increase in one year, he could understand why they would be upset. He agreed they should be catching up, but not all at once for this sized increase. Assessor Poschek stated it is his responsibility to let the City know this property has been undervalued for quite some time. He again felt the valuation was correct. Mayor Carlson recommended to only go half way with the recommended increases. This would be an increase of $8,300 on the House value for a total of valuation of $86,500; and an increase 7
of $130,000 for the Commercial Building for a total valuation of $516,100. Motion by Flug, second by Singer, for the Local Board to approve the valuations for the Messin properties as follows: $ 8,300 Increase on Home $516,100 Increase on Commercial Building $524,400 Total Valuations Motion carried 4-0. Jacqueline Allen 30720 Maple Street 15-00418-00 A letter was introduced from Jacqueline Allen. She stated in her letter that she had just closed on a property, in which the sale price was lower than the valuation. She included the MLS copy of the property, and explained the condition of the home is in substandard condition. Assessor Sandberg stated he knew a little more about this situation. The property had been listed for sale for 200 days. Mayor Carlson questioned how the Board could argue with the information of the very recent sale and value? He stated he felt they should split the difference and go half way with a figure of $251,000 for a valuation figure. Motion by Carlson, second by Flug, to approve the valuation figures of $251,000 for the property located at 30720 Maple Street. Motion carried 4-0. Assessor Sandberg summarized a number of recommendations whereas he had already spoken to some persons regarding their valuations prior to the meeting. 8
Kirk Bergland Recommended a reduction on the small parcel of land to now reflect $1,400.00. Jim Carney Recommended a reduction to $396,400 Owners of Bob Winters old home Recommended a reduction of $457,300 Dave Ricklickee Recommended a reduction on his cabin to $217,600 Motion by Wishy, second by Singer, to approve the above recommendations above. Motion carried 4-0. Motion by Singer, second by Flug, to recess this hearing to the Continuation Hearing Date of April 22, 2008 at 7:00 p.m. Motion carried unanimously. The meeting recessed at 9:55 p.m. Respectfully, Barb Barnes Administrative Assistant 9