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04/20/1992 BOE - 0000545857 THE MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE BOARD OF REVIEW OF � APRIL 20, 1992: The meeting of the Board of Review was called to order at 7:35 p.m. by Mayor Nee. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE: Mayor Nee led the Council and audience in the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag. ROLL CALL� MEMBERS PRESENT: Mayor Nee, Councilwoman Jorgenson, and Councilman Billings MEMBERS ABSENT: Councilman Schneider and Councilman Fitzpatrick Mayor Nee stated that there would be two parts to the City Council meeting. The first was the annual Board of Review meeting in which assessed valuations on property would be reviewed. He stated that there was a system of appeals to the judgments of the Board of Review that would be discussed. He stated that Leon Madsen, City Assessor, would discuss the process and limits of the ability of the Board of Review to make adjustments, and what the criteria for ad�ustments normally would be. � Mr. Madsen, City Assessor, introduced the representative from the Anoka County Assessor's Office, Mr. Ed Thurston, and stated that he would be answering any questions regarding mobile home units and apartment buildings. Mr. Madsen stated that the Board of Review reviews the values placed on properties as of January 1, 1992, for taxes payable in 1993. He stated that the Board is required to review each property and to make any findings they see fit. There is one requirement that if the accumulative changes in the assessment amount to more than one percent, or a one percent reduction, all of the changes in the assessment would not be valid. This simply means you cannot change the total of the assessment by more than one percent. Mr. Madsen suggested that the Board of Review make one of three possible motions as each case is presented: to affirm, reduce or increase the Assessor's value. If the property taxpayer is not satisfied with the results they do have the right to appear before the Anoka County Soard of Equalization which takes place June 17, 1992. Mr. Madsen stated that there were three residential property owners who have indicated that they wish to appear this evening, and we have prepared presentations for each of those. He stated that they have additionally received a number of letters of protest from � commercial property owners, who wanted the letters entered into the record. 58 BOARD OF REVIEW MEETING OF APRIL 20. 1992 PAGE 2 � Mr. Madsen stated that they had received most of the letters since Friday, and it was too short of time to do anything, but that they would take care of them. He stated that if anyone was going to appear at tonight's meeting that had not contacted the Assessor's office prior to the meeting, it might be necessary to continue the meeting. He stated that he thought the pro7ected date for the continued meeting would be May 4, 1992, if there was need for a continued meeting. Mayor Nee asked Mr. Madsen to briefly discuss the valuation process. Mr. Madsen stated that during 1991 there were approximately 210 sales of residential property. He stated that about a year ago, our ratio, which means our estimated market values divided by the actual prices, was at approximately 94.5 peraent of the sale prices. He stated that during the year of 1991, that eroded to less than 92 percent. The State Department of Revenue and the Anoka County Assessor's o£fice prefer to have a ratio somewhere between 94 and 95 percent. Mr. Madsen stated that in reviewing the sales and looking at our values, it appeared that the structure values were pretty accurate. He stated that it did appear that the land values were somewhat short. He stated that for the assessment this year, we increased land values approximately 10 percent. He stated that the � accumulative increase amounted to on the average of 4 percent. He stated that did not necessarily mean that each one increased 4 percent; some might have been 3, some might have been 5. He stated that it depended upon the ratio of the land to the building and whether there were a lot of extra items on the property, suah as fireplaces, and extra baths. Mr. Madsan stated that commercial/industrial property was somewhat different. He stated that there were very few sales, and many of the sales were under stress--properties either in foreclosure or businesses going out of business--and very little was done with those properties. He stated that they did track some smaller industrial praperties and made some reductions on restaurant-type properties and multiple dwelling or multiple tenant-type of office warehouse buildings. Mayor Nee stated if there was anyone in the audience that would like to make an appeal and had not contacted the Assessor's office. Mr. Madsen a5ked them to check in and that Jeff Nienaber, the Appraiser, would fliscuss the assessment with them. Robert Radoush, 5901 Fifth Street N.E.: Mr. Radoush stated that the value of his home is at $89,000, and he felt it should be at about $80,000. Mr. Radoush indicated that � Mr. Nienaber had discussed comparable sales of properties similar to his with him. Mr. Radoush stated that the house across from him was appraised at $80,000, and that it was comparable to his. 59 BOARD OF REVIEW MEETING OF APRIL 20, 1992 PAGE 3 � Mayor Nee asked Mr. Radoush how his house differed from those comparable to him. Mayor Nee asked Mr. Madsen to interpret the comparable sales. Mr. Madsen stated that the comparable property at 5916 Seventh Street sold for $85,900, and that by adjusting it based on whether it was better or worse than the sub�ect, they ended up with an indicated adjusted value of $l01,000 on that particular property. He stated that the first ad�ustment made was for a fireplace. Mr. Radoush indicated that it was a Franklin stove. Mr. Madsen stated that the comparable had no fireplace, and they added $600 for that. He stated that the comparable property must have had central air conditioning, and the subject property did not, so $1,000 was deducted from the sale price. He stated that the subject property�s garage was 660 square fee�, whereas the comparable had 308 square feet, so they added to the subject property for the difference in the size of the garage. He stated that those types of adjustments were made throughout the comparable sale properties. Mayor Nee asked Mr. Madsen if they were proposing a modest reduction from the original valuation. Mr. Madsen stated that was correct. He stated that there were some items of repair that needed to be done, and they felt they should be recognized. He stated they felt the value should be xeduced from $89,100 to $87,100. � Councilman Billings asked Mr. Radoush if the property across the street from him sold for $80,000. Mr. Radoush indicated that it was appraised at $80,000. Councilwoman Jorgenson asked Mr. Radoush for the address of the house. Mr. Radoush stated that he was not sure. Councilman Billings asked if was around 5890, and Mr. Radoush stated that it was something like that. Councilwoman Jorgenson asked if they could find out the differences between Mr. Radoush's home and the home across the street. Mr. Radoush stated that it was about the same lot and garage, except the house was a little smaller than his. Mayor Nee stated that miqht make a difference in the estimated market value. Councilman Billings asked if it was possible to get the information on the home Mr. Radoush was talking about so that Council could proceed to the next property and come back to Mr. Radoush. Mr. Radoush indicated that he was not sure of the address and did not know the people who lived there. Mayor Nee asked Mr. Radoush how he knew it was appraised at $80,D00. Mr. Radoush stated that he asked the Assessor who was at his home what the house across the street was assessed at, and he called him and told him that it was assessed at $80,000. � �o BOARD OF REVZEW MEETING QF APR2L 20, 1992 PAGE 4 � Bruce Himle, 1588 Woodside Court, N.E.: Mr. Himle stated that he was at the meetinq because of the proposed increase in valuation from $96,000 to $105,500, an increase of 9.9 percent. He stated that he and his wife purchased the house at the end of November, 1990, for $87,150. He stated that they thought they got a fair price, and tlhey received no dealer consideration from the sellers. Mr. Himle stated that last year when they received the assessment that was pro7ected at $103,000, they appealed. He stated that a conflict prevented them from appearing at the meeting, but Council did consider the appeal. He stated that he submitted a letter from the seller who described how the house had been on the market for nearly a year and quite aggressively for six months, that there were no considerations in the sale, and that he was satisfied with the price received. He stated that the �eller was told by Remax in 1990 that if at least $2,000 of upgracling was done, they felt it could be sold for $88,900. He stated that it was sold to them for $87,150 without the investment and the agent's fees were saved. Mr. Himle stated that last year, Council decided to split the difference at $96,000. He stated that it was an increase of over 10 percent of what they had paid and considered the fair market � value. He stated that the Assessor advised them that to appeal further could reverse the consideration at the County level, so they considered that perhaps they had bought at a slow time. Mr. Himle stated that this year, they are� faced with an increase of nearly another 10 percent, and that in 1 1/2 years there has been an increase of over $18,000 in value, an increase of nearly 21 percent. He stated that Mr. Nienaber explained the appraisal review and the calculations the Assessor's office uses. He stated that the calculations do not take into account things that are not as precise as the numbers they can put toqether. Mr. Himle stated that they have a northern entrance, the only real entrance to the house other than the deck. He stated that the lot has the power, telephone and cable boxes and the hydrant. He stated that it also has a huge elderly Col=tonwood. He asked that the property value assessment not be raised at this time. Councilwoman asked if they purchased the home without the use of a real estate agent, and she indicated that does affect the value of the home somewhat. Mr. Himle stated that the figure quoted by Remax was $88,900, and he said that by contacting them the sellers felt they were recouping the fees they would have paid at, that level. He stated � that he could see where it might have had some effect, and that when the assessment rose last year, they thought the economy was really slow and that there were perhaps some other considerations. 61 BOARD OF REVIEW MEETING OF APRIL 20. 1992 PAGE 5 � Mr. Madsen stated that this property was reduced last year from $103,200 to $96,000 by the Board of Review. He stated that the property is highly comparable to the rest of the properties in the neighborhood. He stated that there are seven oomparable sales of properties that are highly similar and of close proximity to the property. He stated they felt that this last year they needed to go back to the original value level, or they would be treating this property differently than the rest of the neighborhood. He stated that the value increase on that property went from $103,200 to $105,500. He stated that there were a couple of sales added this year to what they had last year, and that all those sales indicate that the value should actually be at around $110,000. Mr. Himle stated that the house had been on the market for a lonq period o£ time. He stated that they felt they were biting the bullet last year to see a jump of 10 percent over what they had closed on less than six months before. He stated that he appreciated the statistical information the Assessor's office deals with, but that is only good insofar as you can sell a house. He stated that he felt fair market value is what the house can be purchased for. Mr. Madsen indicated that the statistical approach is what is done on the overall mass appraisal process. He stated that this process � where an individual review of the property is done eliminates the statistical prooess and gets into the real process of appraisal. He stated that when there are a number of comparable sales that close to the subject property, it is hard to argue with the fact that that is what the market is doing in that neighborhood. Councilwoman Jorgenson stated that there was a home almost directly across the street, 1618 Woodside Court, that is two years older, smaller in square footage, it is also a split level, the grade is the same, he had a fireplace and they did not, the garage is smaller, and the basement is about the same size. She stated that home sold for $96,500 in May of last year. Mr. Himle stated that they do not have the power boxes and the fire hydrant. He said that the other home is landscaped, and from what he has heard, they did a great deal to upgrade. He stated that not much was done to his home the fifteen years it has been there. He stated that at $96,000 it is coming into the same range as the Board of Review set up last year. Mayor Nee asked Mr. Madsen if they assumed the houses in the comparables paid an agent fee and what that fee was. Mr. Madsen said 7 percent is the going rate, although they are negotiable. Mayor Nee asked Mr. Madsen if that was included. Mr. Madsen stated that they do not add a specific number for commission. He stated � that they assume when the property sells that there is a commission paid. 62 BOARD OF REVIEW MEETING OF APRIL 20, 1992 PAGE 6 � Mr. Madsen indiaated that every home does not sell for what it is valued at. He stated that their co-efficient dispersion is 6 percent, and that means if the ratio is 95 percent, houses can sell for 101 percent of the value, down to 89 percent of the value, and are still where they belonq. Councilwoman Jorgenson stated that she would be willing to lower the valuation on Mr. Himle's property to $103,200, the figure they looked at last year versus $105,500. Councilman Billings stated that he felt Mr. Himle had a point in that if the value was lowered last year to $96,000, applying the current percentage of increase, a value of approximately $100,000 would be fair. MOTION by Councilman Billings to reduce the estimated market value on the property at 1588 Woodside Court $5,50o to a new value of $100,000. Seconded by Councilwoman Sorgenson. Upon a voice vote, all voting aye, Mayor Nee declared the motion carried unanimously. Robert Radoush, 5901 Fifth Street N.E. /Continued): Mr. Madsen stated that they had the information on the property located at 5871 Fifth Street, and that was valued at $80,000. He � stated that Mr. Radoush's has 1,534 square feet, and the other property has 1,176 square feet. He stated that the other home was built in 1959, and the subject's in 1964. He stated that the lots are identical in size. He stated that the subject's garage is 660 square feet, the other property's is 572. He said that the finished basement of the sub�ect's house is 250 square feet, the other property has approximately 700 square feet. He stated that they were both ramblers and the same quality of property. He stated that the subject property has no extra baths, and the other property has an extra half bath. Mr. Madsen stated it appeared that the difference was the age and size of the structure and that some of Mr. Radoush's house is on crawl space. Ae sta�ed that his house is essentially the same, except he finished the garage into living space and added a garage in the back, and the other house had a detached garage in the back. Councilman Billings asked if the difference in size was about 370 square feet, and at $48.00 per square foot, how much that amounted to. Mr. Madsen stated that would be about $16,000. Mr. Billings said that if the other house is valued at $80,000, and $16,OD0 is added to it, it amounts to $96,000. He stated that it sounded as though the value of the house across the street as compared to Mr. Radoush's house was fairly comparable in value. � 63 BOARD OF REVIEW MEETING OF APRIL 20, 1992 PAGE 7 1 MOTION by Councilman Billings to reduce the estimated market value on the home at 5901 Fifth Street by $2,000 to $87,100. Seconded by Councilwaman Jorgenson. Upon a voice vote, all voting aye, Mayor Nee declared the motion carried unanimously. Harold Buhil. 6575 Fridley Street, N.E.: Mr. Buhil stated that the Assessor gave him the figures on the two-tier system, and he comes up short of what his actual property tax is. He stated that his home is l0 years old, versus the rest of the homes in the neighborhood that are 2o to 25 years old. He stated that the value is at $106,000, and he would have difficulty in selling it for over $100,000 in today's market. He stated that there was a comparable home up for sale, and he could not see his going for that much more. Councilwoman Jorgenson asked if they could compare that address. Mr. Madsen asked Mr. Buhil £or the address of the property. Mr. Buhil stated it is 1535 Mississippi. He stated that there was another comparable home at 5610 Stinson Boulevard. Mr. Madsen stated that they were not on his block. Mr. Buhil indicated that they were 1 1J2 blocks on either side. � Mr. Buhil stated that the Assessor came to his house, and he has some figures for comparable houses on the south side of Mississippi, and those are all new homes. Councilwoman Jorgenson asked if there was an adjustment made for a home located on Mississippi Street because of the traffic versus Fridley Street, which is more a quieter, residential street. Mr. Madsen stated that those lots are valued somewhat less. Mr. Buhil asked if there was another factor beside the 1 percent up to $72,000 and 2 percent over that amount. Mr. Madsen stated that from $72,000 to $115,000 is at 2 percent, and everything over $115,000 is at 2 1/2 percent. Mr. Buhil stated that using those figures, he comes up with $100 less than the taxes, and there were no special assessments that he knew of. Mr. Madsen asked Mr. Buhil if he was calculating his tax for this year, and that for taxes payable this year, last year�s value would have to be used. He stated that he was not able to calculate the tax to see if it was accurate or not, and on the tax statement that is what is listed as the value. � Mr. Madsen stated that the property located at 6610 Stinson Boulevard was valued at $78,700, and the property located at 1535 Mississippi was valued at $70,400. � � � 64 BOARD OF REVIEW MEETING OF APRIL 20, 1992 PAGE S Councilwoman Jorgenson asked what the difference was in square footage. Mr. Madsen stated that Mr. Buhil's property is 1,076 square feet on a split level. He stated that the property located at 1535 Mississippi is a rambler with 616 square feet on basement, 280 square feet on crawl space, and was built in 1956. Councilwoman Jorgenson asked what the square footage and style was on the home on Stinson Boulevard. Mr. Madsen stated that it was a rambler with 864 square feet on basement, 416 square feet on crawl, it was built in 1953, and has a single garage. Mr. Madsen stated that one of the bigger items on Mr. Buhil's property that tends to make it different than other physically similar properties is that it is a big lot. The lot is 120 feet wide, which is wider than normal. He stated that their recommendation on this property was to reduce it from $106,000 to $103,500. Councilwoman Jorgenson stated that she did not know if she could support reducing the valuation to $103,500, based on the values of the other homes in that neighborhood. Councilman Billings stated that after reviewing the property the Assessor's office has indicated �hat $103,500 is a more appropriate figure than $106,OOD. MOTION by Councilwoman Jorgenson to reduce the estimated market value on the property at 6575 Fridley Street by $2,500 to $103,500. 5econded by Councilman Billings. Upon a voice vote, all voting aye, Mayor Nee declared the motion carried unanimously. Mr. Madsen stated that the people had not contacted the Assessor's Nienaber spoke to them, and explanation. that had come to the meeting that office lived on Locke Lake. Mr. they were satisfied with his ANR Freictht Svstem,Inc., 51 - 81st Avenue N.E.: Mr. Madsen indicated that they received a letter from ANR Freight System, Inc., by fax on April 14, 1992, and received the appraisal on April 20, 1992. He stated that they would be discussing the appraisal with ANR Freight System. He stated that he was not sure if they would be able to resolve it within the next twenty days, but that they would go through the valuation process with ANR Freight System. MOTION by Councilman Billings to receive the letter from ANR Freight System, Inc. Seconded by Councilwoman Jorgenson. Upon a voice vote, all voting aye, Mayor Nee declared the motion carried unanimously. �� � � 65 80ARU OF REVIEW MEETING OF APRIL 20, 1492 PAGE 9 MOTION by Councilman Billings to affirm the Assessor's value of $3,073,800 on the property of ANR Freight System, Inc. Seconded by Councilwoman Jorgenson. Upon a voice vote, all voting aye, Mayor Nee declared the motion carried unanimously. Rash & Associates, d/b/a Perkins of Fridley, 7520 Universitv Avenue N.E. Mr. Madsen stated that there are three parcels on that property. He stated that the proposed valuation is $389,700 on one, $53,300 on another, and $53,100 on another. MOTION by Councilman Billings to receive the letter from Rash & Associates. Seconded by Councilwoman Jorgenson. Upon a voice vote, all voting aye, Mayor Nee declared the motion carried unanimously. MOTION, by Councilman Billinqs to affirm the Assessor's values of $389,700, $53,300, and $53,100. Seconded by Councilwoman Jorgenson. Upon a voice vote, all voting aye, Mayor Nee declared the motion carried unanimously. Total Petroleum, Inc. for propertv located at 5300 Central Avenue N.E.' Mr. Madsen stated that there are two parcels on that property. The valuation is $124,200 on one and $26,700 on the other. MOTION by Councilwoman Sorgenson to receive the letter from Total Petroleum, Inc. Seconded by Councilman Billings. Upon a voice vote, all voting aye, Mayor Nee declared the motion carried unanimously. MOTION by Councilman Sillings to affirm the Assessor's value of $124,200, and $26,700. Seconded by Councilwoman Jorgenson. Upon a voice vote, all voting aye, Mayor Nee declared the motion carried unanimausly. Murphv Oil U.S.A., Inc. for property located at 6485 East River Road: Mr. Madsen stated that they received the letter on April 20, 1992. He stated the valuation on that property is $279,600. MOTION to receive the letter from Murphy Oil U.S.A., Inc. Seconded by Councilman Billings. Upon a voice vote, all voting aye, Mayor Nee declared the motion carried unanimously. Councilmember Billings asked if the $130,700 increase was correct. Mr. Madsen stated that they completely built a new property at that location last year and added some land to it. � � I� 66 BOARD OF REVIEW MEETING OF APRIL 20. 1992 PAGE 10 MOTION by Councilman Billings to affirm the Assessor's value of $279,600. Seconded by Councilwoman Jorgenson. Upon a voice vote, all voting aye, Mayor Nee declared the motion carried unanimously. MOTION by Councilwoman Jorgenson to close the meeting of the Board of Review. Seconded by Councilman Billings. Upon a voice vote, all voting aye, Mayor Nee adjourned the meeting at 8:44 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Roberta Collins Acting Secretary Approved: William J. Nee Mayor