LEADER-HERALD
Gloversville, NY
April 13, 2005

Town residents organizing to fight reassessment

By JUSTIN MASON, The Leader-Herald

BROADALBIN - Angered by perceived inequities in property values and projected tax hikes, dozens of residents are organizing a collaborative effort to scrap the townwide revaluation.

For the second week, more than 70 irate residents turned out for the bi-monthly Town Board meeting to inundate council members with angry comments about the property reassessment recently conducted by Maxwell Appraisal Services.

But after an hour of directing angry comments toward council members, more than three-quarters of the attending residents stormed out of Town Hall in apparent frustration.

They were greeted at the door by Bruce VanGenderen, who distributed copies of a petition, asking town residents to support a halt to the flawed revaluation process.

"After last week's meeting, I concluded that there was no satisfaction to be had with this board," he said, standing in the Town Hall atrium. "They were obviously listening, but aren't going to do anything."

By stopping the revaluation now, VanGenderen said the town's assessors would have more time to review the tentative roll and correct some of the egregious errors made by Maxwell Appraisal Services.

"It might cost more money for the town, but it would be money well spent," he said.

Additionally, VanGenderen urged residents to attend an informal meeting to discuss a plan of action at the Lake View Restaurant, which is scheduled 6:30 p.m. April 26.

After receiving their impact statements last month, droves of residents have inundated the town assessor's office during Maxwell Appraisal Services' informal hearings, which were expected to continue through Thursday.

Many of these residents live near or around the Great Sacandaga Lake, where some assessments increased by as much as 400 percent.

During both Town Board meetings this month, residents have argued that Maxwell Appraisal Services unfairly assessed their properties as lakefront, despite all shoreland being owned by the state and administered by the Hudson River-Black River Regulating district. Resident Judy Blake told the Town Board Tuesday that these higher assessments for lakefront property owners is "double jeopardy" because they already pay exorbitant fees to the regulating district for beach access.

Another outspoken residents during Tuesday's meeting was Barry Perry, who expressed frustration with the assessment of his mother's seasonal camp near the lake, which he purchased less than a year ago for $65,000. Despite the camp lacking both heat and insulation, he said its assessment more than tripled.

When Perry attended his informal hearing, he told the Maxwell assessors that his camp isn't on the lake and has a view that is obstructed by trees he's not permitted to cut down, due to Adirondack Park Agency regulations.

"If Maxwell was going to pay me that money for the property, I'd take it in a heartbeat," he told the Town Board.

But Town Attorney Carmel Greco told the residents that voicing frustrations to the Town Board wasn't accomplishing much, because they had no input in the reassessment. He added that the reassessment is only a suggestion until the assessor's office approves the final roll.

"You're blaming the Town Board for what Maxwell is doing," he said.

Officials from Maxwell Appraisal Services were not available for comment this morning.

Adding to mounting frustration over the reassessment, Chairman William Coloney Jr. said there will be no way for the assessor's office to revisit all the disputed revaluations before the grievance period begins next month.

"There's no way we'll have time to meet with everyone," he said.

He said this was due to Maxwell Appraisal Services taking longer than expected to conduct the reassessment, which he faulted the Town Board for improperly supervising the progress. But to help the situation, Coloney is urging residents to file grievances at the assessor's office, including their parcel identification number and signature, which will enable him to keep the roll open until the end of July. This way, residents can go to a hearing officer in small claims court to argue for a review.

"It's your right to grieve," he said.