September 21, ‘09

1. Bob Dunbar Oct 08, 2009 at 7:16 am

   It looks like the tail wagging the dog again. The board said there wasn’t a court case and Jane said that they do keep some things a secret. Did the board not know there was a case or were they also keeping a secret and Jane was speaking on their behalf? As far as the rest of the people taking a big hit, they should have come pretty use to it with some propertys being under assessed or not assessed and the over assessed property owner taking the hit every year. I can certainly post some situation if the tax payers wish me to do it.

   I liked the current sales that was posted on the board. It didn’t list the seller or buyer. When they are listed in the paper the complete information is posted. Why wouldn’t this be posted on the board or is this another secret. I have looked up the information and will post it so everyone will see it like I did last year. The Wirt assessment office just does not get it.

   I wrote a letter to the assessors office and to this date I have not received a response to this date. They will have to respond.

2. Eliza Oct 09, 2009 at 10:10 pm

   I find it offensive that Bob Dunbar proclaims to be the savior of our community and taxpayers. If your boss had ordered you to drive six blocks off your postal route to deliver Homeowner Henry’s mail; then Henry’s neighbor showed up at your monthly postal meeting to complain to your boss that Henry’s mail should also be delivered an hour earlier; then you found that the neighbor was stopping for “coffee talk” with your boss AND had even gone to the County Postal Department to complain about your job performance, you would have been quite irate.
   Your sister is like Homeowner Henry – - she DOESN’T reside in our community. People pick up her mail; bus drivers and other passers-by ask, “Who USED to live there?” You are obviously analogous to the neighbor; you don’t live here. “Henry’s” issue didn’t pertain to you. Yet you rode on your blazing saddle into town because you thought your sister should be entitled to the STAR exemption. A primary residence is one that is lived in six months and a day. Alice and the other assessors TOOK COURSES, ARE literate and knew the truth. However, you thought a little White-Out could eradicate the application’s wording: “Anyone who misrepresents his or her PRIMARY residence…shall be subject to a $100 penalty…and may be subject to criminal prosecution.”
   After you had the rules bent, either you didn’t want the rest of us to know your real motive for showing up at town board meetings OR you thought you should punish Alice and the other assessors. You then began your campaign (with Jon Reitz) to show how much more you two apparently know than our educated assessors. Your next mission was to demonstrate that your sister’s house couldn’t possibly be assessed correctly. You insisted that minutes be mailed to your home in Delaware and snapped your fingers, assuming Alice was supposed to take time from her job to provide you with information immediately. YOU repeatedly brought up the issues pertaining to your sister (August 13, 2008 – - “WHY is it so important to the assessors to continue to single out Gail Miller?”) That is called PROJECTION, Mr. Dunbar, when a person attributes to others the qualities HE has.
   I particularly like your messianic comment on September 15, 2008: “I’ll take it upon myself to report all of the sales on this website.” October then November then December then January passed before you posted any and then (drum roll) there they were in February. And we’re supposed to believe that you’re a sincere, honest man with your April 14, 2009 comment: “This was the fact that things need to be done on the up and up” and your November 2nd remark “The time will come when the assessors’ office will…abide by the laws.” YOU’RE the one who disregarded the laws so your sister would benefit. WHAT LAWS have the assessors broken??
   Facts about the assessors: 1) They WERE trying to follow the law with the STAR application. A person whose primary residence is in another state should NOT be eligible; 2) Not all assessors state that an acre of land “goes for $1000″; their guidelines show the first ten acres may sell for $600; however, the next 15 acres are worth less (Remember GUIDELINES means this process is NOT an exact science); 3) In July 2008 Mike Scott said it was a “conflict of interest” for Alice to be approached about Mr. Dunbar’s issues – - yet he continued accosting her, AND a witness did see John Day calling Mr. Dunbar one day; 4) The assessors SAVED taxpayers possibly $15,000 by doing the revaluations of 1000 parcels! (The “overassessed property owner should NOT be taking the hit every year!”); 5) Less than 5 percent of assessments were changed; 6) The Director of Real Property Services stated that 17 appearances at Grievance Night was NOT a significant number”; 7) The state’s Office of Real Property Services sent a certificate PRAISING our assessors; Alice just got done giving a report at April’s, June’s and July’s meetings; yet Mr. Reitz asked why assessors don’t give a report each month?
   TWO analysts at the New York State Office of Real Property Services in Albany have stated, “The assessor does NOT have to attend monthly meetings or send monthly reports.” One analyst contacted an AGENCY ATTORNEY and wrote, “There is nothing contained in the pertinent section of the Real Property Tax Law (Article 3, Section 2) that
   contains language stating such a requirement.”
   (So, Mr. Reitz, please tell your acquaintances that it is a waste of time to circulate petitions; and if you would use good interpersonal skills, Alice would readily answer questions.)
   10) The July 13th comment “I guess in the meantime we can assume our assessors aren’t doing anything”? Alice drives to Belmont once a week, works at the town hall on Mondays and Wednesday nights, organizes records, is called at home to report to the town hall or nearby towns to answer questions – - not doing anything? Then after she saves the taxpayers thousands of dollars, there is an “uproar” at a meeting because she’d like to make a little more than the $10 an hour she is close to making now?
   Thankfully, Alice continues trying to be fair and conscientious and has tried to remain dignified as a few people assail her; many of us appreciate her dedication and her organization of MANY fundraisers which benefit area communities. (We’d appreciate it if Mr. Dunbar spent as much time in Delaware trying to improve life there.)
   Thank you, Learay, for mentioning the septic issue that was supposed to have been addressed over a year ago. Why isn’t this person held accountable? Is it true the town LOST A GRANT because the situation was not handled correctly?

3. learay Oct 10, 2009 at 11:54 am

   Eliza,
   I have been questioning the sewer problem but unless it is brought up at a meeting I’m not writing about it. This is a brief of the meeting so that the towns people know what it going on that can not make it to the meeting. Yes the town did lose a grant and the town board admits to it and they are trying to rectify it. Until they can get the Mosher’s to sign over the property we are all going to continue to pay the additional costs.
   Why isn’t anyone questioning why the town hasn’t received any housing grants? There are plenty of folks in town that could benefit from those grants. I believe the ball was dropped on that also. There are many grants available for housing not just the one through Cuba Community Development Corp. Has anyone on the board looked into those?
   Let’s ask why the judges books have not been audited. She has consistently reminded the Supervisor that this needs to be done however; it is now October and they still are not done.
   Now it is budget time and they will not have time.
   We can also question why the board has yet to act on the new town law that Paul Sadler has brought to the board months and months ago that has not been acted on. I appreciate that they are going through this with a fine tooth comb however; it took them months to even start to act on it after Paul gave it to them.
   I would like to comment on one thing though- what does volunteering at community events have to do with the rate of pay someone receives at their job?

4. Bob Dunbar Oct 10, 2009 at 8:59 pm

   There are a lot of statements that Eliza has made. Some of the statements are accurate and others are not. I will address the comments when the person identifies her/himself.

5. Concerned Citizens of Wirt Oct 10, 2009 at 11:47 pm

   Bob- Good luck on that one!

6. Eliza Oct 11, 2009 at 3:39 pm

   Lea,
   The issues you bring up are important, and the common thread running through most of them is the element of time. There must be a calendar from which the monthly agenda is written. If the judge’s books should be audited each year, that needs to be added to the appropriate month – - and action taken the following month.
   It sounds as if the “unique issues” that arise (sewer, windmills, Local Law #2) take longer to resolve. Maybe the board needs to adopt a “three-month guideline.” If Local Law #2 was explained in August, then the board has that month and September to study the information and ask questions; but by October, a decision should be made.
   As you mentioned, some members want to study an issue with a “fine tooth comb.” However, if a motion is tabled, it would be expeditious to table it for ONE MONTH, not indefinitely.
   I mentioned Alice’s community service in a separate paragraph from the one that mentioned her duties and pay. I admire anyone who is criticized somewhat frequently yet continues to perform his or her duties. I believe some members and support staff are more motivated to serve than to pick up a paycheck. Although I appreciate the money saved by taxpayers because the assessors did the revaluations, I believe the greater number of hours Alice works every week justify her receiving a wage “much higher” than what the other assessors receive – - just as the judge should receive more money if the hours she will have to work will be greater than they are now.
   Just my opinion – -

7. Bob Dunbar Oct 12, 2009 at 12:18 pm

   I have requested the current sales of property for the Town of Wirt for 2009 from the county. I will post them as soon as I receive them. I am glad to see that someone is looking at them. It is nice to see the comparison between the assessed value and the sale price. Sorry for the late posting last year.

8. Bob Dunbar Oct 13, 2009 at 9:38 am

   Eliza,
   I am still waiting for you to identify yourself so I can respond to your numerous false statements. Why wouldn’t you use your name? Is it you really don’t know the facts and I would provided the facts that could be verified and you would look bad? It appears as though your information is second hand information.

9. Bob Dunbar Oct 29, 2009 at 12:51 am

   I am making the following comments so anyone reading it will know the facts concerning my involvement with the assessors in the Town of Wirt.

   I became aware that the assessor’s office in the Town of Wirt had taken my sister and brother-in-law off the STAR program for 2 years without proper notification. My sister was able to get it reinstated and received the proper credit for only one of the years. The reinstatement was completed prior to my involvement. I became involved starting November 27, 2007 as my sister was not able to get the rebate she was due. I called John Day on November 28, 2007 and asked him if he could tell me what the status was on the rebate and he told me he could not tell me what the status was but he could tell me the procedure. With Alice coaching him, he told me what the procedure was. He said the paper work had been submitted to the county. After further checking I found out the paper work for the rebate had to be submitted to the state. The paper work was not completed until after my call on the 28th. Since my involvement there has not been any STAR application with any white out on it. I have the certified copies. I became further involved when I did some comparisons in Belmont. I learned that the Millers had been grossly over assessed and the comparisons had been grossly under assessed or in between there somewhere. My sister and brother-in-law have complained about their taxes since day one as most people do, so I really never paid attention. These are a few of the assessments that I observed. Keep in mind that the assessments were at 74% and I am using only the homes as the land is fairly constant depending on the acreage. Miller’s home was assessed at $54,700, John Dunbar’s at $36,000, Dan Dunbar’s at $30,500 and the Wightman’s home at $10,600. These numbers did not make any sense to me, but what do I know, I have not been trained. After the reassement and going to small claims court Miller’s increased by 5% to $57,500, John Dunbar’s increased by 48.6% to $53,500, Dan Dunbar’s increased by 94% to $59,200 and the Wightman property was decreased to $1,500 as the home was torn down. The Wightman property was assessed at $40,000 prior to Dan Dunbar buying it for $5,000 then Dan’s assessment was reduced to $10,600. The house was never torn down until November but the assessment was $10,600 on the tax status date of March l. During this process the assessors told me there was a concern that the Millers were receiving the STAR program. There is a procedure in place that the assessors must follow in the event they do not believe the taxpayer is entitled to the STAR program. On March 15, 2008 I met with Randy Harmon and John Day about the assessment on the Miller property. No adjustment was made. On May 7, 2008 I talked to John Day about coming to Wirt for the sitting of the rolls and he didn’t think it was worth my while as he knew the Miller property had been scrutinized when they did the assessment and I would have to go before the Board of Assessment Review. I went to the sitting of the rolls on 5/14/08 and John Day told me again I would have to go before the Board of Assessment Review. I went before the Board of Assessment Review and no adjustment was made there. All the taxpayers that went to small claims court had already received some type of adjustment. I don’t think the Millers were singled out. On July 14, 2008 I drove to Wirt to receive the information I needed to submit a small claims petition to the courts as I was not able to get the assistance needed from the assessors. Remember I am the enemy and an outsider who should not receive the same privileges that some locals receive. I requested the information from Alice and she told me she was not going to give it to me. I asked her why and she told me that Steve Presutti told her not to give it to me. I had met Mr. Presutti a few times and I knew better than that. I knew she had been instructed not to be involved with the assessment of the Miller property as it would be unethical. I had also written her a letter stating the same thing. With a little common sense she would have provided the information requested as it does come under the freedom of information laws. I went to the town board meeting on 7/14/08 and the entire board voted that Alice was to provide me the information requested. Mike Scott made the motion. Shawn Dunmire suggested that I request any information by certified mail as it upsets Alice and Jane when I come in. I shouldn’t have to do that, but understand where Shawn was coming from so I agreed. I sent my last request by certified and Alice returned it to me by certified mail and billed me. I sent the money and requested a refund and to this day she has not responded. Do you think the assessor’s office or the town sends information to other people by certified mail and bills them for it? I went to small claims court and a reduction in the assessment was made. I never received a notice from the assessors office which did not surprise me. It is very interesting that I would be criticized for not posting the property sales promptly. I attempted to do it a few days ago but when I contacted the county only 4 of the 12 current sales have been submitted to them. Just another one of Alice’s little games as she would not want someone to see what was going on in her town and no one will be able to compare sales with assessments.

   Here are a few facts about the assessors 1. They did not follow the laws about the Star Application 2. The assessors were compensated for doing revaluations. 3. The assessment changes were closer to 100% than 5%. 4. The assessor’s report for April states that 70 notices of change of assessments went out. These were just the ones that had met with the assessors after the revaluation. Most people didn’t even come in. You can’t get from a 74% assessment to a 100% assessment by changing 5%. 5. I am aware of the law that the assessor does not have to attend the monthly meeting or submit a report. By not doing either indicates the kind of elected official you have. 6. Why would the assessor ever drive to Belmont every week when you have mail, faxes, telephone and e-mail? 6. Alice may be working Monday and Wednesday night so I guess if I were a taxpayer I would question what your other 2 assessors are doing. You may want to suggest that the town board appoint Alice as the sole assessor rather than having 3 elected ones. This would be a large savings for the taxpayers. There are only 3 towns in the whole county that have elected assessors.

   I had never met John Reitz until I became involved in the assessor’s office. I find him quite knowledgeable and interested in what is going on in town. I don’t think it makes any difference what his or anyone elses personality is. When he or anyone else requests information, they should be able to get it. I was told by one of your elected officials that they are busy and I asked when I should call back and was told in two hours. I called back in the two hours and asked for the information and was told no. When I asked why I was told, because I don’t feel like it.

   I am more than willing to discuss anything I have written and would be glad to provide more specifics. I would like nothing more than to stop this nonsence, but as long as I continue to be treated the way I have been by a very few people in the town hall I see no relief in site until they are gone.

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