HAMPTON � Hampton Beach residents came together Wednesday morning, Dec. 3, to have their own Boston Tea Party of sorts in revolt over a recent town revaluation that saw their property assessments and tax bills skyrocket.

HAMPTON � Hampton Beach residents came together Wednesday morning, Dec. 3, to have their own Boston Tea Party of sorts in revolt over a recent town revaluation that saw their property assessments and tax bills skyrocket.



�We are being taxed out of our homes,� Eugene Rogers said. �It�s too much to handle. I don�t know if they just want to put up a chain-link fence around our property and say they own it now or what.�



Residents in symbolic gesture recreated the Boston Tea Party to show the town of Hampton they are not happy. Instead of crates of tea they used Lipton tea bags, and instead of throwing them into Hampton Harbor, they just opened them up because they didn�t want to litter.



�They really hit us hard,� said Rogers, who came up with the idea for a tea party. �If it was just a gradual increase every year, which they do anyways, it would be one thing, but this one hit is unbelievable.�



The tea party at the Route A1 bridge preceded a meeting at the Coffee Break Cafe, where roughly 30 residents showed up to voice their displeasure about the recent revaluation. Residents say they are upset because property assessments went up as the housing market continues to collapse.



At the meeting the members gave themselves an official name, The Coalition for a Fair Assessment, and brainstormed ways they can get their message out and what they can do to fight what they say are unfair assessments.



Linda Gebhart, who was elected as president of the group, said the increases don�t make sense. Her 75-year-old beach cottage went up 35 percent in value, meaning a higher tax bill that will have to be paid.



�We want to be able to pass this cottage on to our two kids,� Gebhart said. �We plan to retire here and I don�t know if we are going to be able to last that long.



�At this rate no one but the very rich will be able to live here, it seems the town has shifted the tax burden onto the beach property owners.�



Many in the group said they too were afraid they won�t be able to afford to live at the beach any longer.



�My land value more than doubled from $117,600 to $238,900,� said Richard Perkins.



�I was stunned when I got my latest tax bill,� said Jeanne Lilienthal, who lives on J Street. �My taxes went up over $1,000. In this economy, the sharp rise in assessed values is, quite frankly, unbelievable.�



The group discussed the possibility of hiring a lawyer for a class-action lawsuit and requesting an official meeting with the Board of Selectmen and Town Assessor Bob Estey.



They want to know the criteria used by Estey on how assessments were determined.



Estey has said one reason why the beach was hit hardest is because prior to the revaluation the beach was an estimated 65 percent of valuation, while the town was in the 85 percent range.



The revaluation, which is required to be done every five years, used home sales from the last two years to determine the new assessments.



One resident urged everyone at the meeting to file an abatement by the March 1 deadline to fight the increases.



Alicia Preston said they need to fight as a group or they will be ignored. �We have to make it so they cannot ignore us,� she said.



Preston�s mother, Judy, said the assessments were out of whack.



�My assessment went up to a third of a million dollars,� Judy Preston said. �I couldn�t get a third of a million if my life depended on it. Otherwise I would sell my house and move to Florida.�



Gebhart, who recently hired an appraiser to get a second opinion on her assessment, said the group plans to hold other meetings in the future.



Anyone interested in joining the group should call Gebhart at 929-3850.