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they wanted to drop out of the district and they went to the County for <br /> assessing services . The West Hennepin District disbanded at that <br /> time. The OronoCouncildecidedthatOronowanted their ownassessor . <br /> We hired the assistant assessor of the West Hennenin District in late <br /> summer . In the fall of that year he resigned as Orono assessor to <br /> accept an assessor ' s job in another city. Being so late in the <br /> assessing year the Council voted to sign a contract with Hennepin <br /> County. We signed a 4 year contract with the understanding that we <br /> could break the contract after one year . During the first year the <br /> County increased the lakeshore property. It was at this time I <br /> discovered that we had notning to say about who was doing our assessing <br /> and Orono had given up all control . At the conclusion of that year ihe <br /> Council was truly unhappy with Hennepin County. We tried to break the <br /> contract and were told that we could not break the contract . At the end <br /> of the next year we passed a resolution stating that at the end of the <br /> 3rd year we wanted to advertise and have an assessor on staff to be ready <br /> and work with the County with that last year so that at the end of our 4 <br /> year contract we would be ready to go with our own assessor . That has <br /> never happened. I would like to give you my view of the situation. <br /> Picking your own assessor , whether it be an independent contract or by <br /> hiring your own employee, is one of the very few pow�rs a City has left. <br /> That is very i;�portant to me because we hav� such unusual property here <br /> we want to have continuity of an assessor. <br /> Don Monk stated that Milt Hilk, Chief Appraiser , has been very <br /> closely associated with the community and the appraiser that has <br /> worked in Orono has not changed over the 4 year period. It is true that <br /> Orono is very complex and it is important that those consistencies be <br /> maintained and that we know a lot about your community. It is for that <br /> reason that we have not changed our staff . <br /> Councilmember Grabek stated because �ae have our own assessor does <br /> not mean t'nat we can go below a certain level of taxation in our area, <br /> If we do go below a certain level of taxation the county then has the <br /> right to step in and reassess what has already been done. In other <br /> words just because we have our own assessor does not mean that <br /> everyone ' s taxes will go down or they won ' t go up as fast. <br /> Donk Monk stated Orono has a median assessment ratio of 94 . 5 and a <br /> mean of 93 . 2 and the coefficient of dispersion, which is an <br /> equalization measurement, of 8 . 30 . The lower the percentage the <br /> tighter theclustering of your equalization within the City. When we <br /> entered into the contract with Orono the coefficient of dispersion in <br /> the City was 160, we brought it down to 8% in the very first year . <br /> Bill Sime stated to Don Monk, that he had sales ratios from the <br /> investigative staff of John Burgers office and the State of Minnesota. <br /> They are the 1983 sales ratio studies , sales analysis for Minnesota tax <br /> court , county wide ratios by property type, based on sales from January <br /> 1983 through September 1983 . 1983 sales are compared to 1983 market <br /> values . These differ a great deal from what you have just given us . <br /> Don Monk stated that Mr. Sime ' s information was not correct since <br /> he was mixing the years of statistical information. The statics I <br /> page 2 <br />