[music] Okay. Uh, I'm going to call to order the board of assessors meeting Thursday, November 20th at the Lakeville Public Library 2:00 meeting. It's just after 2. Uh, other than Lake Cam, I do not believe any of us in the room are recording. Correct. >> Correct.
And we do not have anyone from the public here, so we can skip over public comment. And we have uh I don't even know if there are any in there. I think we took care of all the invoices during the week to be signed. >> Uh there is a set of minutes from our
October 23rd meeting, which we need to sign off on and we will take care of. But I also believe we need to approve them. So I'll entertain a motion as long as we've reviewed them uh to approve the October 23rd, 2025 meeting minutes. So move second. >> Second it. >> All in favor? I. Motion carries
unanimously. >> And there are also some motor vehicle reports uh for month ending October 25 that need to be signed off in addition to updated statuto exemption reports for vision and munis. Um the next item on
our agenda under seven is for [snorts] Haral to give us an update on the tax classification hearing which is going to take place with the board of selectmen. Um, I believe it's this coming Monday if memory. Is that right? >> Tuesday. >> Tuesday. Next week. Tuesday. So, what's
the update? >> Um, so I'm busily trying to get uh the last of our submitts together. I'd hope to have that all uh done and tidied up for you today, but um it will be done
today before I leave Lakeville. I will need your signatures on the LA4. I spoke to uh Jen uh Williams, our Bureau of Local Assessment Advisor, and she said if I could get everything submitted and ready to her tomorrow, she'll review.
>> So, tomorrow morning, you're going to be ready to sign. >> We have to do it online. >> Well, you'll need to sign it. Uh actually, the only form you need to sign is the LA4. >> Okay. >> It's the value tabulation page >> online. We got to do it, right? >> Yeah.
>> So, if you could sign that. Uh I uh with your blessing am authorized to uh sign on behalf of the board the other uh collection of forms. >> As always, you are authorized to do that. >> Okay. >> What you call L
>> L-4. If you get to the gateway, you'll see um tax uh tax rate or tax recap and then it's a menu item. >> Okay. Um, under that you'll see at the bottom uh where you just click uh the
button save. It asks you not to submit. Uh I like to get the whole package together. Review it. >> So just sign it. >> Just sign >> sign and save. >> Sign and save. >> Okay. Um um I guess the one uh component um of
the tax classification that I do want to at least have a brief brief conversation on because we're always asked to make the recommendation on the single versus split tax rate. Um and um I know traditionally we have voted to keep it
single, but if you could maybe touch on that quickly and that way we can have a formal vote as [clears throat] to which way we're going to recommend. >> I don't yet have a projected rate. I will um by the time I leave here later um as you know in the past we've always
adopted or the select board has adopted a single rate. um given Lakeville's relatively small commercial industrial base, larger than some some communities, but uh still
relatively small. And given the complexion of that uh commercial base, a lot of mom and pop small commercial uh property owners, um it would take a significant increase in the commercial tax rate to
yield a modest reduction on. >> Has there been there hasn't been >> any kind of increase in the commercial property? >> There's always been single. >> Has anything been developed? >> Anything new? >> No, >> nothing new. nothing new. It's it's been
the same it's been for a number of years now. So >> I should comment that um communities many communities that have a two tax rate uh structure are moving towards a single rate. Uh it
demonstrates to the commercial community this is a good place to to locate. uh we don't uh overly burden the commercial industrial sector with high taxes. And for the record only because this does come up um and I
believe we're all aware of it but um in case anyone's watching uh there is no real valuable option or any option at all probably is the best way to say it to to split that commercial tax rate out to say listen because you know people
hear oh the mom and pops maybe we can go after the really [clears throat] large companies we have and leave the mom and pops alone. There's no way to to bifrocate that and say >> it's an all or nothing, >> right, >> proposition. >> So you can't say the small guy will keep the rate similar to residential and the
large national corporation, we're going to give them a higher tax rate. If you're going to if you're going to do a split rate, it's the same rate for everybody in commercial. Is that an accurate statement? >> Yes. And I also advise communities that are contemplating a split rate to get
that advertised so that they can solicit uh input from the commercial industrial community. Um that's a discussion that should happen well before the classification hearing >> in my mind. >> So having said that again this is just a
recommendation. The board of the select board is the one who actually ultimately decides the whether we have single or split. Do we have anyone who's wants to make a motion one way or the other? >> I'll make a motion to keep it um the single rate considering there's been no
change since last year. There's no real reason to to do it this year. >> We have a motion to keep it single rate as recommendation. >> Seconded. >> Any further discussion? All in favor? >> I motion carries. Uh I believe this
Linda made a note here. I believe um so in what we signed um one additional report that was added as new business was additional motor vehicle commitment um that I believe yep everyone signed off on but just for the record
[clears throat] did an additional one because it was not ready in time for the posting of this agenda. Um do we have any other business to come before the board? If hearing none, I do believe we have to go into executive session or do you have
anything else? >> I just had one additional comment relating to setting up tax rates. Uh I uh have tabulated new growth revenue uh and we're coming in at right at
$200,000 in new revenue. Um the folks upstairs were delighted to hear that. I think in their projections they were looking at 220,000 but uh uh we're we're we're close to meeting the figure that
they built their budget on and we'll be able to come to terms with a $20,000 disconnect >> and you give them guidance on the next fiscal year or how does that >> they always Yeah. early in the year before we even know what the building season's going to bring. They're looking for projections. Uh uh the best we can
do is uh get a pulse from the from Nate and the building commissioner. What do you see in the way of new projects? Anything that >> that might give us a surge in growth? >> There's something per it just got permitted that they know they're going to you know >> otherwise the permits on >> we kind of look at the five-year track
record to prognost >> Yeah. It's kind of like preparing your budget for a business. The only problem is you can go out and bring in try to bring in new business. Kind of tough to bring in new new buildings. Um but yeah, it is a little bit of a funky thing
because yeah, >> they're asking us for numbers before. >> Of course, we had several years of uh outstanding growth with all the development. >> There's a couple of projects in the works now that may >> yeah decent growth in the years to come >> in the years to come. But yeah, I'm not
so sure that any of those permits are going to happen in FY. Well, and the town's FY27. So, >> anything else you have for us, sir? >> I do not. >> Okay. So, what I'm going to do at this point only because uh I we do have a
What do we have? An abatement or >> um so I was made made aware [clears throat] of this a couple of days ago. Uh >> well, not the spec just I don't I will get the specifics. I got to go into is an abatement we're dealing with. >> Yes. Yes. So, we have an abatement issue that we need to go into executive session for. So what I will do is
entertain a motion to go into executive session um to discuss an abatement um issue and we will not return to open session. So >> so moved. >> Second. >> Second. >> Roll call [clears throat] vote. Leblanc >> LeBlanc I >> Lamo >> I
we are out of regular session and going into executive