Results of Revaluation

Welcome to the Notes from the Grove, providing Liberty Grove residents and visitors tid bits of information about goings on in town government.

• Town Treasurer Janet Johnson provided some interesting results and facts of the recent revaluation and Board of Review: 12 percent of all parcels sought reassessment and of that 81 percent were successful in having their parcels reduced. Assessed value before and after the Board of Review divided by the number of successful reassessments would mean a change in value of $55,530/parcel. This is straight averaging. Assessments are based on a number of factors. For instance, a sales analysis might show that people are willing to pay higher prices for waterfront property on the Green Bay side than waterfront on the Lake Michigan side, making the value of the property on the Green Bay side more valuable. There are some values that were only lowered by $1,000 compared to the averaging done above. The town is waiting for all expenses to be tallied for the Board of Review.

• The open book process took nine days and the assessor saw about 35 people a day. He was not able to call some people back since approximately 55 phone messages were given to him every day for at least the nine days, and not all phone lines could be answered during the day. The largest class of property in Liberty Grove is residential and the average increase in that class was 35 percent.

• After acting as the town’s assessor since 1998 Mr. Dorschner retired at the end of 2011. The Town Board conducted a search for a replacement and has selected Associated Appraisal Consultants, Inc. Founded in 1959 they have offices in Appleton, Lake Geneva and Hurley. They employ 50 people and work with 200 plus municipalities. Ryan Andersen, a Certified Assessor II, will be the project manager for the town. The board selected a three-year maintenance contract whereby all parcels will be kept within the 10 percent rule as established by the Department of Revenue. Additional information on Associated Appraisal Consultants may be found by visiting http://www.apraz.com.

• The Town Board approved a request by the Ellison Bay Service Club to use the old fire station to construct an informational kiosk. The club plans to place the kiosk in a location to be selected that will provide visitors and residents with information on events and businesses in the Ellison Bay area.

• The Town Board approved the Highway Committee request to install 25 mph and pedestrian signs on North Appleport Road.

• Janet Johnson and Bud Kalms are putting together a recommendation on fees charged for public record requests per Wisconsin Statute 19.35. The current charges established in 2009 are deemed to be out of date with current means of receiving the data requests.

• A reminder to use the town website for information on upcoming board and committee meetings as well as minutes from previous meetings. The 2012 Spring and Presidential Preference Primary will be held Feb. 21. The Spring Election is scheduled for April 3. A new voter ID law is in place and requires voters to show a photo ID. More information may be found at http://www.gab.wi.gov.