Last week, residents who live on North Fourth Street packed Stillwater City Hall to protest street and water assessments as high as $15,700.
On Tuesday night, the Stillwater City Council voted 5-0 to direct staff to research options for deferral of payment of street assessments for low-income residents and active-duty military reservists. The council also agreed to have sample appraisals done for some affected properties before awarding the project.
“Right now, when we do these assessments, I think everyone in the city thinks they are one year away from getting a $15,000 bill,” said Mayor Ted Kozlowski.
Nine property owners on Fourth Street are facing assessments of almost $15,700 for both street and water service as part of the estimated $2.5 million project. Another 28 property owners are facing street assessments of $12,600.
Kozlowski proposed that staff research several measures to make the policy more equitable, including extending payment time. The assessments currently are paid over 10 years at an interest rate of 4 percent.
“I personally would like to stretch it out to 15 years,” said City Council member Mike Polehna.
Fourth Street hasn’t been repaired since the 1970s, and Polehna said the reconstruction work is long overdue. “They have pushed all of this on us from 50 years ago, and now we’re trying to make up for it,” he said.
Public Works Director Shawn Sanders said the city is “getting caught up” on its street projects. In 1997, when he first started working for Stillwater, the city did 0.2 miles of street repairs, he said. This year, they are doing 3 miles.
“For me, knowing that we are at the end of large reconstruction projects makes me feel better about street-assessment policy,” Kozlowski said. “It didn’t seem sustainable to me for everybody to keep getting hit with these massive assessments. There’s light at the end of the tunnel.”
In Stillwater, most property owners pay 70 percent of the cost of street reconstruction, and the city pays 30 percent. Because Fourth Street is a state-aid road, property owners will pay 50 percent of the cost of street reconstruction, and the city and state will pay 50 percent, Sanders said.
State law requires that any assessment cannot exceed the benefit to the property owner from a project.
Bruce and Darcy Bell-Myers, who live on North Fourth Street, said they are dubious that any “benefit” they might receive from the street project would outweigh the $12,611 they are being assessed.
In Stillwater, homeowners are charged per unit; commercial and industrial properties by linear footage. The Bell-Myerses said their modest house on a single lot is facing the same assessment as the mansion on two lots next door — a property formerly owned by actress Jessica Lange.
Bruce Bell-Myers said city officials should not go out for bids on the project before having appraisals done.
“Residents of Fourth Street are paying the price for the city not getting out in front of it and not getting them done sooner,” he said.
He said he hoped city officials would also explore other possible deferrals, including for residents who are facing serious illnesses. “For illness or loss of a job seems humane to me,” he said.
Resident Eliza Severson, a nonprofit fundraiser, said she was shocked to learn she and her husband could be facing a $15,700 assessment for street and water repairs. “I didn’t realize it was possible that this could happen, that we could get hit with a big bill like this, and that I wouldn’t be able to plan for it,” she said. “I’ve always thought (street assessments) were with the taxes and paid over time.”
Severson said she hopes city officials will reconsider the street-assessment policy.
“It makes me question who is sitting at the table, creating a plan that divides neighbors, gives the largest financial breaks to the wealthiest and threatens the financial security and stability of many who can’t afford such a large payment, even drawn out over 10 years,” she said. “It’s another $165 a month for us, and that would be hard.”
She said she loves her “mixed-income” neighborhood, but worries about about the future of the city if the current policy is allowed to remain in place.
“I feel like it’s just going to become less and less mixed-income,” she said. “Last week, it seemed I was the only person of color in that whole room. We’re talking about equity. If we want people to feel welcome, that they can build a life here, it needs to change.”
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February 26, 2020 at 11:14AM
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$15,700 street assessment? Stillwater to explore protections for low-income residents and others - St. Paul Pioneer Press
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