HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - Board of Civil Authority - 08/12/2021BOARD OF CIVIL AUTHORITY 12 AUGUST 2021
The South Burlington Board of Civil Authority held a meeting on Thursday, 12 August 2021, at
6:00 p.m., in the Conference Room, City Hall, 180 Market Street.
Members Present: C. Shaw, Chair; C. Trombly, D. Kinville, M. St. Germain, A. Gross, B. Gross, T.
Barritt, M. Cota, C. Santiorello
Also Present: M. Lyons, Assessor; M. Dupuis, J. Li, S. Zale, H> & D. Shah, L. Benner, J. Buck
1. Emergency Evacuation Plans:
Ms. Kinville reviewed the procedure for evacuation in case of an emergency.
Mr. Shaw reviewed guidance for the wearing of masks which is encouraged but not mandated.
2. Comments from the public not related to the agenda:
No comments were made.
3. Any change in the order of the Agenda:
No changes were made to the Agenda.
4. Minutes of 5 August 2021:
Mr. Trombly noted that he had recused himself during the Campbell hearing as he lives on the
same street.
Mr. Gross moved to approve the Minutes of 5 August 2021 as amended. Ms. Gross seconded.
Motion passed with all present voting in favor.
5. BCA Oath:
Ms. Kinville administered the Oath to members of the Board.
6. Hear appeals and set inspection date:
a. Mark and Sandra Dupuis 35 Iris Lane
Mr. Dupuis was sworn in and City Assessor was sworn in for all appeals for the night.
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Mr. Dupuis explained that he did a comparison between his property and 4 others on Iris Lane
(he showed pictures of the properties). The houses are all the same design, the only difference
being the location of the garage on either the left or right side of the house. Mr. Dupuis also
said he noted the amount and percentage of each of the property assessments. The other
properties went up 18-22% while his went up 26.38%. Mr. Dupuis said his property has a little
higher acreage because it is on a corner, but the second lowest assessed house has more
acreage than his. The houses are all the same age, all have 4 bedrooms.
Mr. Dupuis said he felt his property should be assessed at $460,000-$465,000.
Ms. Kinville asked if any improvements had been made to the house. Mr. Dupuis said they
added an egress window in the basement in 2019. He also noted his house is 2 feet narrower in
front which would account for the lower square footage.
Ms. Lyons said the property is located in area #20 and is in average/good condition. It is
assessed at 227.14 per square foot. She felt the property is in line with the sales in that area
given that the aim of the reappraisal was to bring homes up to fair market value.
Mr. Trombly asked if the other properties Ms. Lyons used in her calculations were also rated
average/good. Ms. Lyons said she believed the ones on Iris Lane are.
Testimony in this appeal was closed. The hearing was continued to 19 August.
An inspection team was then appointed consisting of: Mr. Barritt (team leader), Mr. Gross, and
Mrs. Gross. They agreed with the appellant to view the property on 15 August at 1 p.m.
b. John Li 55 Bower Street
Mr. Li was sworn in.
Mr. Li said the property was bought in 2013 for $331,000. His new assessment is $493,000, a
40% increase. The house has 3 bedrooms and an unfinished basement. Mr. Li said he
compared his property to houses at 53 and 57 Bower Street and 2 Cabot Court. All are close to
3,000 sq. ft., and their original values were close to his. All have more bedrooms and more
square footage but were assessed at much less than his. Mr. Li showed a photo of 10
neighborhood houses. Their average square footage cost is listed at $173 while his is $37
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higher. He also studied 91 properties in the area. They have an average square footage cost of
$181 while his is $29 higher. Mr. Li also noted that his house is the only one in the
neighborhood with only 3 bedrooms.
Mr. Li said he felt his appraisal should be $443,000.
Ms. Lyons said the property is located in area #1. It is appraised at $493,000. It is 2.9 acres. All
the homes including the comparables she used are in good condition. Ms. Lyons
acknowledged that 55 Bower Street has less square footage, but she believed it is proeprtly
assessed based on sales that have happened.
Mr. Trombly asked why Mr. Li’s property is assessed higher. Ms. Lyons said it could be that it
wasn’t appraised high enough in 2006.
Mr. Li raised the issue of equity. Mr. Trombly said maybe the appraiser didn’t do a good job on
equity. Mr. Li said the reason for the appraisal was to get equity. He asked why his property is
valued based on sales and the other properties in the neighborhood are not. His property is
assessed 12-14% higher than the houses next door.
Mr. Li said he felt $450,000 would be a reasonable appraisal.
The testimony was then closed. The hearing was continued to 19 August.
An inspection team of Mr. Barritt (team leader), Mr. Gross and Mrs. Gross was appointed. They
will inspect the property on 15 August, at 2:30 p.m.
c. Sanford Zale 4 Iris Lane
Mr. Zale was sworn in.
Mr. Zale said his previous assessment was $352,00, and it was assessed at $490,000. When he
appealed, it was lowered to $467,000 based on comparable properties next to his. The reason
he is appealing to the BCA is that he feels it is still out of line with the other properties. 2 Iris
Lane has more rooms, more bedrooms, though acreage and square footage are the same. His
property is assessed at $56,700 more than that property. He asked why. 6 Iris Lane has more
bedrooms, more rooms, more acreage and a few more square feet. Previously, the Zale
property was assessed at $1000 less than #6, but now it is $12,000 more. He asked why. #3 Iris
Lane across the street has the same number of bedrooms, and the acreage and square footage
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are the same. They paid $33,000 more than the Zale’s paid. Now they are assessed at $26,000
less than the Zale property, a $50,000 shift in values. Mr. Zale asked what has made his house
so much more valuable. He also noted that #5 Iris Lane is now under contract. The asking price
was $445,000. Mr. Zale felt that $445,000 is the appropriate assessment for his house.
Ms. Lyons said the property is located in area #20, and again she was looking at sales. She felt
that $467,000 was the appropriate value.
Mr. Shaw asked whether Tyler had said why they adjusted the original assessment. Mr. Zale
said the notice said “adjusted for sales.” He added that in 2018, #2 iris Lane was sold for
$410,000. He asked why that isn’t a comparable since it is right next door.
Mr. Barritt noted that the Zale house is appraised at the same rate as one that is 2 stories with
more square footage.
The testimony was then closed. The hearing was continued to 19 August.
An inspection team was appointed consisting of Mr. Barritt (team head), Mr. Gross and Mrs.
Gross. They will inspect the property on 15 August, at 1:45 p.m.
d. Hemen & Diti Shah 34 Bower Street
Mr. and Mrs. Shah were sworn in.
Ms. Shah said they had talked to Tyler regarding comparable properties. They were then
shocked to get not only a denial but an increase described as “corrected data.” When she
asked what that data was, she got no response, so she did some research. The card indicates a
finished basement, but their basement is unheated, and the regulations say that if a basement
is missing any one of the components, it is considered “minimal.” Ms. Shah said the appraisal
on the house went from a “3” to “3.64.” Nothing had changed from when they bought the
house in 2007 except for the replacement of a piece of rotting wood. Ms. Shah then reviewed
some comparables, one of which had a 30% increase while theirs has a 50% increase. She said
that those properties have a basement listed as ‘unfinished’ and she knows some are finished.
There were houses in the neighborhood that sold in the past few years for $481,000 and
$513,000. The Shah house is appraised at $550,500. Some other houses have backyards, but
their house has neighbors on 4 sides.
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Mr. Shaw asked about the large deck. Ms. Shah said they actually made it smaller before the
appraisal, from 900 sq. ft. to 480 sq. ft.
Ms. Shah also noted that when the appraiser came, there were shingles lying on the ground
that had been blown off the roof, and there were cracked siding issues.
The meeting was then briefly suspended to allow Ms. Lyons to recalculate based on the change
from finished to unfinished basement. Ms. Lyons then came back with a value closer to
$539,000. based on sales. Ms. Shah asked if the inspection team will base their decision on
what they see now. She noted that the damaged roof and siding were repaired later in 2021.
She felt the property value should be $495,000.
Testimony was then closed. The appeal was continued to 19 August.
An inspection team was assigned consisting of Mr. Cota (team leader), Mr. St. Germain, and Mr.
Santiorello. They will view the property on 14 August at 10 a.m.
e. Laura Benner 3 Vale Drive
Ms. Benner was sworn in.
Several BCA members noted that they are acquainted with Ms. Benner but feel they can act
impartially.
Ms. Benner presented a list of 26 properties on Vale Drive with their old and new values and a
ranking from highest to lowest. She noted that she had originally been one of the lowest but
was now in the middle, having jumped 9 ranking places. She is the only one to have made such
a jump, and her property “sticks out like a sore thumb.” She had a 32% increase. 90% of the
others had a lower percentage. Only one was higher. She has had no renovations, no upgrades
and no additions. She also noted that of the properties on Value and Pinnacle that are most
like hers, hers has the lowest square footage. Her new appraisal is $638,800. #4 Vale Dr. is
appraised at $530,500, and it has 2 more bedrooms, one more bath. #23, which is similar to
her house is appraised at $515,600. #59, which is the same as hers, is appraised at $487,300.
Of all the properties, Ms. Benner said hers has the least square footage, fewer bedrooms, and
an unfinished basement. She believed a proper assessment should be $454,100.
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Ms. Lyons said a sale at 2 Vale Drive was for $689,000, and sales on Pheasant Way were from
$625,000 to $642,000. 17 Carey Lane sold for $601,600. She felt 3 Vale Drive was properly
assessed.
Ms. Benner said her data was factual for #2 Vale Drive. It has 784 more square feet, an
additional bedroom, an additional ¾ bath, finished basement, covered porch, storage area,
central air conditioning, radiant heating, solar panels, and is 11 years newer than her property.
Testimony was then closed. The appeal was continued to 19 August.
An inspection team was appointed consisting of Mr. Cota (team leader), Mr. St. Germain and
Mr. Santiorello. They will view the property on 14 August at 11 a.m.
f. Joshua Buck 3 Woodbine Street
Mr. Buck was sworn in.
Mr. Buck said his house was built in 1941. It has 1290 sq. ft., 3 bedrooms, and 1-1/2 stories.
His assessment went from $284,000 to $392,000, a 58% increase. That is the highest increase
in the city. There have been no improvements since 2006. There is an unheated office in the
basement. Mr. Buck said the average assessment for larger homes went up 29%. Most have
large additions, additional ½ bath and an extra half-story. The exterior condition of the Buck
house is poor with original windows and siding. An estimate for repairs to the outside is
between $60,000 and $100,000. Mr. Buck noted that the card says the basement is finished. It
is not, and there are wires hanging everywhere. Mr. Buck said he chose 10 comparable homes.
All have more square footage and are in better condition. Their average increase was 29%.
Many were completely renovated, some with additional square footage. #4 Elsom is double his
lot size and is assessed at $23,000 less. Both 7 and 16 Victory are larger and completely
renovated and are assessed much less. 10 Woodbine has more square footage, is in beautiful
condition, and is assessed at $2400 less than the Buck house. Mr. Buck felt a fair value for his
home is between $310,000-$315,000 because of the condition.
Ms. Lyons said both the basement and square footage are noted incorrectly on the card. She
asked to meet with Mr. Buck to go through the information to get it corrected. Mr. Shaw
suggested continuing the hearing until 19 August. If Mr. Buck is satisfied with what he and Ms.
Lyons come up with, he can withdraw his appeal. If not, the appeal can continue.
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g. John Henning 103 Old Farm Road
Ms. Kinville noted that she received word from Mr. Henning that he is in the hospital with
COVID. He asked for a continuance to reschedule.
Mr. St. Germain then moved to continue hearings “a” through “f” to 19 August. Mr. Cota
seconded. Motion passed unanimously.
Mr. Trombly moved to continue the John Henning hearing to 16 September, 6 p.m. Mr. Cota
seconded. Motion passed unanimously.
Mr. Shaw then briefly explained what the inspection teams can and cannot do.
5. Other Business:
Ms. Kinville said some people are complaining about the scheduling. One wants to be heard
after 10 September. Mr. Shaw said the Board can probably find an “oddball day” in September.
Members agreed.
As there was no further business to come before the Board at 8:50 p.m., the meeting was
adjourned.
_____________________________
Clerk