Today [clears throat] is Wednesday, January 28th at 5:31 p.m. in conference room 2. The meeting for the board of assessors is now in session. Call to order. John Kaine here. Queen here. Bill Brown here.
>> Okay. First on the agenda is public comment. There will be a two-minute time limit per person. We'll start with Zoom first. There's anybody on Zoom. >> While we're waiting, who else has a public comment? >> So, I do.
>> No, no. I just want to just to get a and thank Okay. Well, if you have a public comment that's trying to get this anybody on Zoom. Mhm. >> But they're not asking a question. >> Okay. Now we'll just go right around the
room. >> Um uh Linda Hadley and thank you very much Cindy for all you. She's very gracious, very kind. >> Um the article in the paper, some woman complain. To me it sounded like a madeup
article. Uh who has time to look up what their neighbors paid for taxes? Um, my taxes increased approximately $250 a quarter. Um, um, 70 in March. I worked
50 years, 40 in the same place, full-time. Built up a small investment I hope will take me 20 more years. It will be used for emergency only, no travel, none of that, none of the things I dreamed that retirement would be. and uh
several sleepless nights as a sole supporter worrying about how to pay taxes, car and house insurance, income tax, electric, TV, oil, mower, home maintenance and repairs, car repairs. Uh I snowball my driveway cuz I can't
afford a plane. I think this is an awful burden for a senior. Um in my neighborhood, there's fire pits all around me. The stench is terrible frequently. These people should be accountable in tax dollars for the air
pollution they create. There are new driveways, garages, sheds, decks, and patios. I have none of these. I wonder if these people are being taxed on all these extras. This is a great hardship for me. Um, and my question is, is
anyone keeping track of where all our tax dollars are going? Thank you for your comment. We will take it under adisement. >> Um, >> sorry. Do you have a comment? Do you want to go? Go ahead. Won't have to zore.
>> Um, just talking about the abatement that I I got some bullet points here if you want them afterwards. >> Sure. That's all right. >> Thank you. Um, so this is the it's 10 cars up on Lake Shrive that little circle there.
Okay. So my property taxes went from 700,000 to a million5 basically overnight. So uh I'm a little concerned about that. This is I can't sell these as single family homes at all. They have to be sold as the whole 10 lot. So, I can't
break it up into 10 $200,000 lake properties. I can't do that. I just can't. Um, they're about 500 to 600 square ft. They're all former summer cottages. I've been rehabbed to be year round. Randy went through them a couple
weeks ago with me. Most of it's old 2x4 construction. I actually like old 2x4 construction, but it's me. Um, very small yards. I mean, size of this room, some of them. Okay.
Um, older windows. I did do insulation in most of the houses on in the process of doing the windows, but there's still a lot. There's no sellers dug out, maybe a quarter the size of this room with a hot water heater and washer and dryer in
some cases. Um, cinder block on peers. There's no lake view or access. Even if I bought it for a million five, I can't build a house there because there's no lake access and really no lake view except through all the other
houses that are around me. And lastly, what I really have a problem with is the wide variation ities around me. >> Um, I have valuations all around me. Different businesses right there and you
know the north the by the ramp there. all those businesses around there, those are like valued half of what I am and I'm just single family homes. I'm not, you know, an acre on the lake with a marina. Okay, guys. Um
the uh getting a tax break this year because of my valuations going because the miller rate went down. So, that kind of is a little something for me to think about. and I'd have to raise the rents $200 a month to cover this
increase. It's $20,000 this year. I went from 3,000 to 8,000 this just this last tax cut. So, it was a huge increase. If my my quick feeling cuz I got a
minute is, you know, if you're going to on day one, you just value everybody and get them all at the right rate. If everybody around me was valued the same as me, you know, I live with that. My mill rate goes down. But the way it is now, it's just it's like this all around
it. It's a little tiny road. It's plowed by a pickup truck, you know? It's it's nothing special. I mean, I take care of it, but it's not like the houses that are around it and the businesses that are around it. Okay. Thank you.
>> Thank you. Thank you. [clears throat] >> Um, so Beth Lai, um, I'm going to try to talk fast and I do have some kind of examples if you just want to be passed with some >> state your address too, please. >> Um, sure. 352 North Lumis Street.
Um so I wanted to talk really about the property tax inequality um in Southwick and how the um came data errors affect the valuation burden um and kind of you know it why it matters you know the property taxes in Southwick are only as
fair as the data that's used to calculate them when the gamma data is incorrect in and or lacks adequate neighborhood detail the tax burden shifts unfairly often towards the middle and lower valued resident to properties.
Um, the review examines whether the current data supports equitable taxation. Now, it's not like I'm challenging changing the tax rate. It's whether the underlying data is clean and consistent enough for the mass appraisal to work fairly. Um, kind of what I
wanted to go through today was just kind of, you know, some of the errors and inconsistencies in the data that I've um, seen and how the valuation changes are distributed across property types. Um, evaluate, you know, whether the neighborhood encoding sighting is being
fully utilized and compare some of Southwick's practices to a similar town with s in size. um kind of provides some evidence base for rational for like a reassessment using verified data and like what you said you know ver you know
look at everybody alto together um then we kind of have like what changed from fiscal year 25 to 26 so really the the revenue for Southwick was only an extra $585,000 um most of the businesses are paying less than they were last year and the
residential um is you know picking is where it's paying more. And then on the next slide, I broke it out into brackets of where the homes like lie in between like 200 and 300,000 to see where that
change was. So you can see really the the the major change, you know, came in the, you know, 200 to 400 bracket. you know, it looks like there must have been like either a seven or an 8% increase maybe across mo most of Southwick, but
then the additional changes kind of um came here and the increases are not uniform, you know, by the quality of the grade of the home, which suggests a coding or depreciation differences because it just it's not the market
forces um that are causing these, you know. And then like on the next slide you'll see um the average home grade three took half of that hit. Um you know so that's just another clear that it's not being um >> give you like 10 more seconds just to
not wrap it up please. >> Yeah you know um you know and then I'm going to skip to the residential depreciation. There was a huge change in the estimated year built um that was changed that caused a lot of the changes. I've analyzed the 25 year um
data to the 26 year in or in 25 there were 78 homes that were built in 1995 and now there's >> cut you off but that's all >> I'm referring my two minutes to them. >> Thank you. >> I don't think that's something we can >> she was supposed to be on the agenda and
I misunderstood her at the last and I apologize for that. If you want to take a little bit longer >> that's fine. Go ahead. >> Thank you. Um, so now this year there's 1,510 houses. So that's it like, you know, over 14 houses were were changed to an
estimated year built of 1995. And that if affects the depreciation value, and that's where a lot of these changes are coming. When you look at the depreciation value from last year in the mount compared to this year, it's because of that. And like there wasn't.
So now you're putting half of the town built at the at the same at the same year. Um we're not using any really um neighborhood codes. I think there's three. So 90% of people are in one. So everybody's in the same neighborhood code, you know, like the average home
people are all in, you know, the same bracket built in in 1995. Um and it's just very it's inconsistent. Um, I have some like screenshots uh or some like examples where I took out like personal
data except like on mine. Um, just showing some of like the inconsistencies where the house style is wrong. Um, you know, the number of floors, you know, are wrong. There's been, you know, $200,000 in building permits and yet their car does not update to reflect it
and their house is built as of 1995. Well, I haven't had anything done to mine and they've put $200,000 and it's putting us in the in the same um you know level. There seems to be like with the grades in town um it there seems to
be kind of a again they seem to be putting them more on the low side. Um you know so we only have you know >> like another 30 seconds >> there. There's only about 45 houses that
are excellent plus 10 and above and that's just not accurate for Southwick. There's some very beautiful homes and that is a core driver of of the valuation drivers of of their homes. So if there's all of this inconsistent data
is going to be giving in incorrect um you know results um you know like Okay. >> Is did you want to do the same? Is that >> No, >> she can have my time. She have to say
that she wasn't included. >> Yeah. No, no, that's fine. Let's just keep going. >> Appreciate letting her keep going. >> Um >> believe me, I agree. >> Like I I can pass like and so and I'm not just coming here to kind of like complain because I I do think that you know what that there needs to be like a
a structured data audit with with the records. you know, expand the neighborhood coding to reflect real market differences. You know, verify size, grade, depreciation inputs and perform reassessment using correct data. You know, this will provide transparency in the future. Um, you know, how can I
help? I can help with uh data validation and consistency checks uh like identifying like outliers and coder inconsistencies. Um, you know, and I I I feel like there's there's so much incorrect data that I've come across.
It's just not a fair playing field. And, you know, in the last meeting that I was at, you know, I think it was stated that, you know, Randy had already gone out to 40 houses and lowered the value, you know, on all of them. I'm not sure what that number and in in the last
meeting. It was like an estimate um in December. I was like the public time. We don't want to argue semantics. I want to give you time to to say your case for >> I was thinking that that's just showing that yes that there there is some data
inconsistencies. Um you know one thing you know like the sawmill for the the elderly um facility that sold back in 2020 for $19 million. Yet we have all these depreciation codes in there. So
percent good is 20%. So a place that sold for $19 million that has updates that is making a significant amount of money where saying is like 20% um kind of good. You know with me myself I had Randy out and you know it was great but
like my car had the wrong house style, the wrong number of floors, the wrong square feet. Um you know it had me having a utility storage that I don't have. Um, you know, and I never checked. I guess the pool was there from somebody
who who lived there long before I did. >> Um, bought it, >> you know, but there's a there's a fireplace on mine and I don't have a fireplace. Um, you know, and again, you know, I had my, you know, listed as as modern, you know, it's not, you know, a dump, but it's not by no mean like
modern when I'm comparing to other homes that are like the same grade um, you know, as me. there there just seems to not be, you know, consistency. And when I went through like even a house that I know is vacant, has been vacant for like
seven years, like that value of the house, you know, still went up, you know, like $22,000. And, you know, I I have to question because I know that nobody's, you know, been living there. So, I'm assuming that it would the value would go down and not up. Um,
>> everything's going up in the market. what we will address. So, we've given you quite a bit of time. >> Okay. [clears throat] >> I understand what you're stating that data is inaccurate. >> We have seen that through some of these
things that we talked about. Um Randy has been going through since day one. You know, he was hired with this with all of these questions, right? So, he's getting things in line. We're figuring out what we have going on. Um, I'd like I don't want to address everything
specifically, but the idea is that we're trying to get all the data correct, right? We I paid taxes in town. My taxes went up. We're spending a lot of money. I'm believe me, I'm all for saving our tax dollars. The problem is we're the
government's spending a lot of money. And where do they get the money from? Property tax revenue. >> Well, if it was fair across the board, but it it's not fair. like it it's very I hate to say that I mean it's it's just it's never going to be fair in everyone's eyes. I mean that's so it has to be equally unfair maybe to an extent
but the idea is that we're going to have to go we're going through and getting all this data and it's on the responsibility to a point of the homeowner to look at their property card and recognize in you know discrepancies in incorrect [clears throat] information and to come to the assessor when he has
plenty of time you know you know before this abatement process and he can get that done you know over the summer when there's more time to do things but I understand a lot of people haven't looked their property tax bill because it hasn't necessarily been in the news. It hasn't been huge increases, but year-over-year and especially with a
revaluation year, you see a large increase. And I think it's good that we're looking at this and everyone's recognizing that, hey, we're paying a lot of money. Where is it going? You know, who's getting it, who's benefiting, what not, and who should be paying, who will be paying. And that's what we're trying to figure out. Number
one, get the valuations legally set across the board. And then the tax rate is based on what town wants to spend. And can I [clears throat] understand like the tax rate? I think my major concern is seeing all of the houses that were changed to a 1995 effective year bill. And that's where the addition
that's why the house I mean the data doesn't lie. I have the >> I don't want to pick a statement. >> Yeah. >> Part of the data that you have is you also need to understand how the CAM system works. And so that effective year built that you keep bringing up again
and again is just part of how the system works and part of how the depreciation gets applied to older houses because you're not going to depreciate down to nothing. It's an 1800's house but if you're still living in it it's not, you know, depre depreciated down to 1%
because it's so old. So there's a threshold and so please allow me to finish it. It's your uneducated opinion with this data that you've looked at that we don't have neighborhoods and you're saying we have about three but we actually have it goes by site index and there are six.
>> So the site index affects >> I'm sorry I have to cut this off. I we have we have to get these things done. >> We've got a meeting. >> You're welcome to get on the agenda if you have specific concerns but I I understand that you know you see this broad data breach or this data
inaccuracy. Uh but that's something we are diligently working on, >> you know. >> And yeah, >> I mean it's been in every meeting that we've since since I became the chairman that we have been looking into this and trying to figure out the three of us and Randy and Cindy [clears throat] and Kim
in the office, how can we get the most accurate data, right? I'm paying the same bill as you are. You know, it's the same the same data in there. Yeah, I'm not saying that. I don't agree with you and that's why I had been suggesting that we have someone come in and let's get that fresh starting point. We'll
have a data collection company come in and inspect every home that hasn't been inspected in the last two years. >> The other we have to move. We have to move on. >> I apologize, but we do have some things to take care of. >> Are there any other people for public
comment? Thank you. >> Do you see any any anticipation as to when the complete armhog will happen or when they'll hire out to get the data in? >> It's something that I have been talking about and I think the board might be
proposing in the future. Uh we would have to appropriate the funds. So if it's something that you would be voting on, you know, at the town meeting it would be dollars from whatever fund to pay for this data collection effort. And
um if we do that and and uh it could cost anywhere between I'm saying 150 to 200,000 but we might capture that and new tax growth uh dollars and new growth from things that were not accurate that we're going to record again. So, that's
what I've kind of been suggesting and uh something that we can do to address this and hopefully restore the public confidence in this office and and the things that they don't want to >> Well, respectfully, I think you're helping to do that.
>> It's a very approachable department. >> Thank you everyone. We're going [clears throat] to move on for new business. Oh, sorry. You've reviewed the agenda, the minutes from December 22nd, 2025. Can I get a motion to approve the minutes from December 22nd?
>> I make a motion to approve the meeting minutes of December 22nd, 2025. >> A second. >> Bill Brown seconds. >> All in favor? John Kane? Yes. >> Dean Horatic, yes. >> Bill Brown, yes. >> Passes.
Okay. So, new business. We're going to go through all the abatements and such. [clears throat] >> Can I have a motion to approve the December motor vehicle obeyance? >> I'll make a motion to approve the motor vehicle abments for December. >> Yes.
>> For December 2025. >> Second. >> All in favor? John Kane? Yes. Yes. >> Bill Brown. Yes. >> Motion carries. And I have a motion to approve the invoice for the Hampton Hampshire Countyy's Assessors Association winter
seminar in the amount of $20. >> I'll make a motion to approve the invoice for the Hampton, what is it? Hampton County winners seminar. HCA ca Winter seminar. >> $20. >> Second that motion.
>> All in favor? John Kane? Yes. >> Dean Heratic. Yes. >> Bill Brown. Motion carries. >> Can I get a motion to approve New England Time Solutions Invoice for $223.73? >> Make a motion to approve the New England Time Solutions
invoice for $223.73. >> Second. >> Second. >> All in favor? John Kane? Yes. Dean Archic, yes. Bill Brown, yes. Who cares? Can [clears throat] I get a motion to approve the WBM Mason invoice for $1469?
>> I make a motion to approve the WVM Mason invoice for $1469. >> Can I have a motion to approve a second WBMA invoice for the amount of $8867? I'll make a motion to approve the WBM Mason invoice
for $8867. Bill Brown seconds. >> And we'll vote on both invoices. All in favor? John Kane? Yes. >> Dear Roach, yes. >> Bill Brown, yes. I have a motion to approve the CI technologies invoice or edits in the
amount of $950. >> Make a motion to approve the invoice for the CIA technologies for $950. >> And that's the expanded vision cards. Is that >> Yeah, that was part of the new changes to the GIS
cards that are now there and the links to the registry of deeds for uh >> the the deeds for the individual home. >> Bill Brown seconds. >> All in favor? John Kane? Yes. Abject. Yes. >> Bill Brown. Yes. >> Motion carries.
>> Can I have a motion to approve CIA Technologies quarterly maintenance invoice in the amount of $1,025? Make a motion to approve the CIA technologies invoice for $1,025. >> Bill Brown seconds. >> All in favor? John Kane? Yes.
>> Dean Heratic. Yes. >> Bill Brown. Yes. >> Motion carries. >> Question. Chair. >> Yes. >> Is it, you know, kind of normal for department heads to not be able to sign off on certain invoices and some of
these are for 20 $30. Is that something that you know would be referred to the >> policy thing policy thing? >> I was just I don't know. I'm just curious. >> Yeah. >> That there's a is there a dollar amount that you can no spend without approval?
>> And is that something that we could give him or is that like a select board level the policy thing and it's just a rule that's been there. It might not apply in every situation, but it was violated somewhere and so they have this precaution here.
>> I wonder if we could look into that because I mean I think for some of this stuff it I mean maybe the CA technologies $1,000 but for like WB Mason and I think things like that that might be something to look into. So, if you could look into that, see if any questions. >> And if it is, maybe we can make a
suggestion to select board if that's how we come out, change the policy. >> That way, we don't have to vote on a $80 invoice that we're going to, you know, it's for office supplies that you're going to buy regard. >> Yeah. >> Yeah. You may have a budget that you track to. >> Yes. >> You are responsible for. >> Yeah. It's budget time right now, as a
matter of fact. >> Yeah. That' be great. Can I have a motion to approve the release of chapter 61A in Mastriani's name for 64 Tannery Road? >> I make a motion to approve the Mastriani.
>> Just real quick, could you just explain this just like it's a lean release? Okay. And so it's a new ownership actually. >> This one replaces it. He bought it from the Mastrianis, but he wanted to keep it
in 61A. So, we had to release his name to and put his name on it. >> It's just an update. >> Yes. >> So, I make a motion to approve the release of uh chapter one 62A >> 61A >> 61A in Mastrian's name for 64 Tannery Ro.
>> I second that motion. >> All in favor? John Kane? Yes. >> Roach? >> Yes. >> Bill Brown. Yes. >> Motion carries. Okay. Followup. Can I get a motion to approve the chapter 61A lean in JDub's name for
64 Tannery Road? JDub is the company that bought it. >> Yes. >> I make a motion to approve the JDub which 64 Tanner Road >> change. I second that motion. >> All in favor? Jonathan? Yes. >> Ratchick? Yes. >> Bill Brown? Yes.
>> Motion carries. >> Okay. Can I have a motion to approve the sewer betterment warrant and commitment for 129 Bergkshire A? >> Make a motion to approve the sewer betterment warrant and commitment for
129 Birkshire A. >> Bill Brown seconds. All in favor? John Kane? Yes. Dean Roick, yes. >> Bill Brown, yes. >> Motion carries. I have a motion to approve the sewer betterment warrant and commitment for 33 irri.
Make a motion to approve the sewer betterment warrant and commitment for 33 drive. >> Bill Brown seconds. >> All in favor? John Kane? Yes. >> Dean Hatchek. Yes. >> Bill Brown. Yes. >> Motion carries. Can I have a motion to approve the sewer
betterment warrant and commitment for 17 Bonnie View Road? >> I make a motion to approve the sewer betterment warrant for commitment portion 17 Bon View Road. >> Still Brown seconds.
>> All in favor? John Kane? Yes. >> Dean Heric, yes. >> Bill Brown, yes. >> Motion carries. Can I have a motion to approve the tax maintenance proposal and contract? That's me. >> That's the one that um where the proposal
and then you wanted them to sign this part. >> Oh. Oh, right. For uh CI is it? >> Yes. >> Yes. The GIS CI technology. Right. And that's basically their proposal for the upcoming year and we'll forward that
information or in make sure that our budget has been accurate. >> It's similar to >> yeah I don't think it was any dramatic increase. >> Okay. Can I get a motion to approve the tax maintenance proposal and contract?
I'll make a motion to approve tax maintenance proposal and contract. >> Second that. All in favor? John Kane? Yes. Roger. Yes. >> Bill Brown. Yes. Motion carries. And can I have a motion to approve all
statutory applications? I'll make the motion to approve all statuto applications. Bill Brown second. >> All in favor? John Kang? Yes. Yes. Bill Brown. Yes. Motion carries. And all these were you
know qualified qualified. Can I just ask one? >> Sure. >> Um, when is this um Oh, Mr. When did when was your start date? >> September 8th, I think it was.
>> When were the assessments all due in >> the assessments due in? What do you mean by that? >> The tax bills when you said you had to have a deadline of having them in was the end of November. >> Um, well, it's the basic classification. Yeah, the classification hearing and setting the tax rate. That whole
process, the classification process is kind of going on through, you know, they can be working on anywhere from September all the way through to November when, you know, depending on how things go, how much information is asked for by the department of revenue, uh, how many people are in line, how
many communities are in line before us, roughly two to three months. >> Um, yeah, about two or three months, I guess, you know. Yeah, about two months I would say. I started in September. It was already ongoing. We worked with a consultant. He had already there's a work plan that's in place that they
talked to you about in the springtimes. So things were already in progress to a certain extent before I got here. But then once I got here, there was, you know, more that we had to do and and basically, yeah, preparing that we're getting everything all the approvals that the Department of Revenue is
looking for. was a revaluation year this year and so they're asking for more information and so it was more uh more of a workload. So with those of you online, our the board is signing up on several applications.
>> So these are the senior rates, blind extensions. >> Yeah, that's what I was seeing. I can tell. Yes, we have some veterans exemptions in your >> blind and then the yellow ones I believe are sorry the senior statuto
complicates. new ones electronic applications like I see other >> no I don't know any communities that are doing that I suppose you could fill up a form online >> but there's also information with some
of them that needs to be submitted uh to for completion purposes The forms are available online for downloading. >> Yes. still signing. Okay. >> [laughter] >> I This one, right?
Is there anything else that we want to discuss? >> I got a baton of abatement applications to discuss in executive sessions today. Yeah. And you can proceed. Thank you.
>> Is that is that on the agenda the executive session? >> No. Okay. >> It isn't. >> All right. Can I have a motion to adjurnn? I make a motion to adjourn the meeting. >> Second. All in favor? John Kane? Yes.
Dina Rogers? Yes. Bill Brown?