Ocean View debacle more than doubles some property tax bills While the town investigates options, mayor says there will be no relief this year.

Taylor Goebel | The Daily Times

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When Ocean View residents David and Anne Rogerson got home from their vacation, they were shocked to find that their property taxes had more than doubled.

The Town Council voted earlier this year to increase those taxes by 50 percent: In the Rogersons' case, that meant their original bill should have gone from about $630 to $945. But when they looked at their statement, the total cost had climbed to $1,506.

"Needless to say, I was a little upset," David Rogerson said. "It's like me coming into your house, grabbing a thousand dollars and then saying, 'Oh, sorry about that.' "

Not all homeowners were hit with the unintended hike: In fact, some are paying below the 50 percent increase after the council switched from town to county assessed valuations in a bid to save Ocean View $250,000 over five years.

But the changeover caused major discrepancies in what should have been a proportionately even increase for all Ocean View homeowners. Those differences are largely based on the age of the home, David Rogerson said.

"I accept the blame for not doing proper due diligence on the extent of the variables between the two systems, but, two wrongs don’t make a right so, as we proceed on this, we will take whatever time necessary to research and vet every possible contingency before making any further changes," Mayor Walter Curran said in a recent statement.

At a meeting Tuesday night, homeowners questioned council members on their foresight and whether the town would reimburse losses incurred due to the unexpected increase, including escrow from mortgage companies.

"I’m not saying yes or no (to reimbursement)," Curran said during the meeting, adding that he wanted to get "all the facts straight" when a resident interrupted him, asking, “Why didn’t you do that before you changed it?”

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It's a question many residents had that remained unanswered Tuesday night, but Curran said the council intends to find a solution by no later than the end of August.

Ocean View resident Jim Carr told the council his taxes had doubled.

"I cannot believe my taxes from you all are within $200 of what my state taxes are," Carr said, exasperated. "To me, the major issue we have here is a bunch of people being overcharged in their taxes, and we need to do something about it immediately."

While residents like Rogerson can take the hit, he said some homeowners, especially seniors on fixed incomes, "might not be able to afford that."

In a statement, Curran said the county valuations caught everyone, including the council, by surprise. Per their discussion with county officials, Curran said council members think the differences between households after the changeover would be "relatively minor," not the rampant fluctuations they are seeing now.

He also said the council is working on a "master list" that shows a comparison between the 2018 town and 2019 county valuations and assessments of every property on the Ocean View rolls.

The council is looking at the legal and monetary ramifications of changing back to the old system or finding a better alternative.

"As mayor, my job is to lead and when the subject of saving the town $250,000 over five years arose, I said, let’s investigate it," Curran said in a statement, adding that the switch arose because of the high cost and perceived unreliability of the company conducting Ocean View's reevaluations. "Clearly, we did not investigate thoroughly."

Residents are still expected to pay their tax bills for this year, he added.

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