06-02-2003 - Laserfiche WebLink

Commission Minutes--June 2, 2003 2597 MOTION, passed Mr. Meyer moved and Mrs. Sorum seconded to delay action until the county board of equalization meets again on June 16,2003, and receive further information on the appeal of Ruth Fossum. On roll call vote, the motion carried with four members voting "Aye," Mr. Wagner opposing. Clark and Jeanette Enebo, 1708 Charleswood Estates Drive, were present to appeal the assessment on their home in the City of West Fargo. Mrs. Enebo provided information on similar homes in the surrounding area, which appeared to be comparable properties from the outside. She assumed most of them would have finished basements, like their home. She said the average assessment on the 31 homes they compared is $207,000, and their home is appraised at $258,000 for 2003. She said they are concerned about inequities and inconsistencies of the assessments in their area. Wanda Wilcox, West Fargo City Assessor, provided a hand-out with photographs of homes comparable to the Enebo property. She believes Mr. and Mrs. Enebo are being treated fairly and said North Dakota is an ad valorem state and property is assessed according to the market. Mr. Klein said the list of similar homes supplied by Mrs. Enebo contains 2002 tax information, and we are talking about 2003 assessments today. Mr. Bennett asked what assessment Mr. and Mrs. Enebo felt would be fair, and Mr. Enebo said their assessment increased by 18% in two years. He feels this is too high and taxes are becoming so overwhelming. Mrs. Enebo felt that $232,000 would be a fair assessment but said they could live with $242,000. Mrs. Wilcox said that was the valuation last year. MOTION, failed Mr. Bennett moved to deny the appeal of Mr. and Mrs. Enebo based on the information presented today. The chairman called three times for a second and hearing none, declared the motion failed. MOTION, passed Mr. Meyer moved and Mr. Vanyo seconded to delay action on the Enebo property until June 16th, when the county board of equalization reconvenes. Discussion: Mr. Vanyo asked for further information on comparable homes, and the board was in agreement that Mr. Klein should physically inspect the Enebo and Ruth Fossum property with the homeowners' permission. The motion carried on roll call vote with four members voting "Aye" and Mr. Wagner opposing. Mr. Wagner asked if there were any other appeals from the City of West Fargo or from any other city in the county, and no one came forward at this time. Individual appeals from townships were next. Orville Iwen, Casselton, was present regarding property in Amenia Township. He indicated he would like his taxes reduced because he has lost considerable cropland due to water draining onto his property. He has attended water resource board meetings, and Commissioner Meyer has met with him on numerous occasions. Mr. Iwen said this situation goes back to 1998 and he presented several photographs of his property, all of which were returned to him.