Oak Ridge Today

Oak Ridge property taxes due Aug. 31

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The deadline to pay property taxes without penalty is August 31, the City of Oak Ridge said in a press release.

“With this date quickly approaching, we encourage you to stop by the business office to pay your taxes directly,” the press release said. “You can do so between the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., or you can drop them in the night depository located outside the building at 200 South Tulane Avenue.”

Payment by credit card is also accepted at the counter and on the city’s website. A 3 percent convenience fee is assessed to all credit card transactions to offset the cost of the program.

The municipal staff cautioned that a relatively small number of property owners may not receive a tax notice. [Read more…]

Opinion: A tale of three cities

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By Trina Baughn

As we delve into what could be the last city budget I work on as a council member, I reflect upon both the state of the city and my contributions thus far. I could boast that, during my tenure, no property taxes were raised, and we’ve reduced total debt levels. However, those claims would be misleading given that council has so steeply expanded their reach into your pocket by other means. In fact, council is considering doing that very thing, yet again, with this budget. More on that in a moment.

Property taxes and debt paint only a partial picture of a city’s financial health. While both are very important, consideration must be given to their utility and return on investment. For many years, I have published in-depth analyses of some of the major expenditures that have brought us to the point we are today, such as:

  • How you were sold a $40 million high school that will, in the end, cost you over $126 million.
  • The fact that the city, not the EPA, was at fault for your water and sewer rates doubling in only a few short years, thereby incurring $33 million worth of debt on top of  the $24 million we’d already spent to avoid the EPA mandate.
  • An accounting of the $10 million you’ve paid on a golf course you were assured would pay for itself but hasn’t and won’t for many more years to come, if ever.
  • Your annual $175,000 subsidy (compare to Farragut, which only spends $15,000) of a Chamber of Commerce that is largely made up of nonprofits, government organizations, and non-Oak Ridge businesses that regularly pressure council to increase your property taxes.
  • Frequent disclosures of excessive, non-essential spending such as a $275,000 parking lot, a $1 million fountain, a $300,000 bathroom and much, much more.
  • How crony capitalism has run amuck, forcing you to offset the extensive corporate welfare the city doles out on your behalf.
  • Demonstrating that you are likely overpaying for your trash services with Waste Connections, which is charging less in communities where they had to compete.
  • Reminding you of the broken promises of Partners for Progress, which cost you $15 million on the failed Rarity Ridge/Horizon Center development 16 years ago and warning of similar pitfalls in the $13 million mall TIF (tax increment financing).
  • And, because half of your property taxes fund our schools, I frequently challenged our superintendent and school board when they would demand more of your money on the grounds that, in spite of being the one of the most heavily funded systems in the state, much of your money is not making it into the classroom where it belongs.

Some will view the above examples through a different lens if they rely upon what they see around town. We have certainly seen an uptick in eateries, and we can all appreciate the aesthetic value of some of the new developments. Those new developments have, however, displaced some pre-existing businesses, leaving us with an abundance of vacant properties. [Read more…]

County mayor’s office identifies top 10 property tax payers

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DOE generates largest county taxes; automotive moves up in rankings

From Anderson County Mayor’s Office

CLINTON—In reviewing a list of Anderson County’s largest taxpayers, one fact is apparent—the U.S. Department of Energy and a privately owned, DOE-related facility are the county’s largest source of county property taxes.

“DOE annually pays approximately $630,000 of in-lieu taxes for the property it owns in the county,” said Anderson County Mayor Terry Frank. “When you add to that, the $934,000 of property taxes generated by the private LLC that owns the New Hope Center at the CNS Y-12 National Security Complex, the combined total is by far our county’s largest source of property tax revenue.

“Ten years ago, Anderson County’s top three taxpayers were Bell South, Summit Properties, and Boeing Inc. This year, manufacturing makes the splash as Anderson County’s top taxpayer is Lawler-Wood LLC, formerly known as Oak Ridge Project LLC (at the Y-12 complex), followed by automotive giants Samlip (SL) Tennessee, and Magna.

“Other significant sources of revenue that should be considered include in-lieu of taxes for another automotive industry titan, Aisin Automotive, at approximately $1.2 million. In addition to DOE, our top ten this year reflects a substantial automotive presence.” [Read more…]

Oak Ridge personal, property tax payments due Oct. 30

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City of Oak Ridge Seal

Friday is the due date for paying real property taxes in Oak Ridge without penalty. All of this year’s property tax bills have been mailed and should have been delivered to property owners, a press release said.

Taxes go to support the operation of many city services—from street maintenance to the library. The police and fire departments, refuse removal and disposal, recreation and parks and many other city activities are all supported by the property tax, the press release said. A portion of the tax also goes to support the Oak Ridge school system.

The city staff said a relatively small number of property owners may not receive a tax notice. [Read more…]

New Roane tax rate could mean another $95 for OR homeowner

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David Morgan

David Morgan (File photo/2012)

The new certified property tax rate and tax rate increase in Roane County could cost the owner of a $100,000 home in Oak Ridge another $95 per year, according to data provided by the Roane County property assessor.

That’s a 19.29 percent increase, according to the information from Property Assessor David Morgan. Here’s the breakdown of the increase: 4.37 percent was due to the increase in the state-certified rate—Tennessee officials call it a tax-neutral rate—and 19.29 percent was due to the 29-cent increase approved by the Roane County Commission on Monday and anticipated in a budget passed in July.

The tax-neutral rate in Roane County went up because the total overall property assessment went down 3.47 percent. The tax-neutral rate is the rate meant to bring in the same amount of revenues after a reappraisal as before. If the overall property assessment goes down, the tax-neutral rate goes up, and vice versa.

The additional $95 per year assumes the property assessment stayed the same, at $100,000, in the five-year reappraisals completed this year. [Read more…]

WYSH: Roane Commission passes tax increase

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Roane County Courthouse

The Roane County Courthouse in Kingston is pictured above. (File photo)

 

Information from WYSH Radio

The Roane County Commission approved a property tax rate increase at its meeting Monday night by a vote of 8-6.

Property taxes will go up by about 30 cents per $100 of assessed value. The increase was needed to support the fiscal budget.

Commissioners approved the county’s budget back in July. Twenty-two cents of the tax increase will go toward the county schools. County Executive Ron Woody said commission members knew the schools needed the money.

Approval of the property tax comes after months of waiting for the state to finish its assessments after the state comptroller’s office took over for the Roane County Assessor’s Office.

BBB-TV owner Ron Berry was elected commission chairman on Monday, and Harriman’s Randy Ellis was elected to his fifth term as vice chairman.

Guest column: Won’t support tax increase, urges residents to prevent further waste

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Trina Baughn

Trina Baughn

Sixteen years ago, Partners for Progress successfully lobbied the city to spend over $15 million of your (the taxpayer) money to launch a major development on the West End of Oak Ridge. The promises were enough to make people starry eyed. There was to be a picturesque subdivision of nearly 4,000 homes along with an industrial complex that, when all was said and done, would produce 17,000 jobs, $1 billion in payroll, and nearly $13 million in additional annual property taxes.

Three years ago, many of the same folks behind Partners for Progress began a similar PR campaign touting the sale and redevelopment of the mall. “More shopping choices are coming!” they proclaimed. To date, the city has approved the use of $1.5 million of your money for infrastructure costs and a $13 million TIF (tax increment financing), which will  suppress property tax revenue at current levels for the next 30 years. In other words, no matter what happens, the 64 acres will continue, as it has for the last decade, to produce only 10 percent of its original value because any increases will be used to repay the TIF loan. Developers and city officials claim that the project will produce $1 million (or 20 percent) in additional sales tax revenue to the city, though, historically, the national retail sales growth rate range is between -11.51 percent to +11.18 percent. Even if we find a way around the notoriously stringent Wal-Mart non-compete covenants and actually bring in real retail, it is absolutely impossible to expect these projections to materialize, since, even in the best of times, we’ve not seen half that level of growth. [Read more…]

Weather: County Trustee will accept in-person, postmarked tax payments through Monday

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Rodney Archer

Rodney Archer

Anderson County Trustee Rodney Archer understands citizens’ frustrations and concerns about being able to pay their property taxes on time, a press release said.

“With county offices being closed much of last week, and again yesterday, because of inclement weather and dangerous road conditions, it has made people nervous about being able to pay their property taxes by the February 28 deadline,” Archer said Wednesday morning. “The inclement weather that’s predicted for tonight doesn’t help that.”

The National Weather Service is predicting a 40 percent chance of snow today after 4 p.m., with increasing chances overnight, mainly between 7 p.m. and 1 a.m. New snow accumulation of one to three inches is possible. A chance of snow continues through Thursday as well. [Read more…]

AC tax deadline looms, alternate plans being made

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Information from WYSH Radio

Anderson County property taxes are due on Saturday, February 28, but with the winter weather in the area, officials are making plans to allow citizens to pay those taxes without undue stress.

The Courthouse is open today (Wednesday, February 25), and County Trustee Rodney Archer’s staff is exceptionally busy as residents who have been snowbound have been paying their taxes steadily all day.

County Mayor Terry Frank said this morning on WYSH’s “Ask Your Neighbor” program that the Trustee’s office will be open—weather permitting—on Saturday in Clinton, Andersonville, and Oak Ridge so that you can pay your taxes before the deadline.

If the weather does not permit, property tax payments will be accepted as “on time” by mail as long as they are postmarked no later than Monday, March 2.

For more information, call the Trustee’s office at (865) 457-6233.

Council to discuss DOE funding, support tonight

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Oak Ridge City Council

The Oak Ridge City Council has a special meeting tonight to discuss U.S. Department of Energy support and funding. (File photo/August 2013)

 

The Oak Ridge City Council will discuss U.S. Department of Energy funding and support during a special meeting tonight. It’s described at least in part as an “information-gathering session.”

The special meeting was called by City Council members Trina Baughn and Charlie Hensley. Hensley, in particular, has raised questions about whether DOE is paying its fair share to the city.

Here’s the language outlining tonight’s discussion:

“to discuss and possibly take action on a plan to engage DOE officials with regards to their obligations to the City of Oak Ridge and its citizenry. Let it [the special meeting request] include formally requesting, in writing, a DOE Community Assistance Review as allowed within AECA 1955, PL 84-221, DOE Order 2100.12A, and other supporting legislation, including those self-sufficiency plans dating from 1980 through a Council Resolution and other joint local government collaborative action to include a specific date for a response.”

[Read more…]

Guest column: Oak Ridge—moving ahead!

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Mark Watson

Mark Watson

In December of 2013, the City of Oak Ridge was given a Christmas present: a strong, viable prospective property owner that would help reclaim the center of our precious city. Crosland Southeast, well-respected developers from North Carolina, came to our city and said they could help us redevelop the crumbling mall within our city. This mall, newly named Main Street Oak Ridge, had come to symbolize the ultimate development challenge for our city.

Now, 10 months later, the time has come for the details of our work to begin to come out in the open. This project has taken several courses. First, the City of Oak Ridge and Anderson County said that they would support the development of this project with what is known as a tax increment district, or TIF. The governments would continue to receive their marginal values in property taxes, but the “new” value created by the private investment in Main Street Oak Ridge would be used to pay for public improvements on the project such as new traffic configurations, road improvements, and building demolition. In return, the private developer would borrow money at his own risk and develop major new retail shopping, with a potential hotel and residential development on the 65-acre site.

This effort has been successful, and major retail tenants have been lined up for filling a targeted 260,000 square feet of new facilities. Our Belk store will receive a facelift, and JCPenney will continue to perform. At present, stores are in the initial inquiry stages of building and will be moving to make announcements by the first of the year or shortly thereafter. I would love to tell you the names of the stores (which I have seen), but we need to honor the wishes of the companies as they make their expansion announcements. I believe the Oak Ridge community will be pleased! [Read more…]

Letter: Scott would provide ‘strong voice, positive change’ on County Commission

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Theresa Scott

Theresa Scott

To the Editor:

I am writing to extend my support of Theresa Scott for County Commission for District 7, which includes Highland View, Pine Valley, and Glenwood precincts.

Although I do not live in Ms. Scott’s district, I am certain she will represent and work hard for all of Oak Ridge as one of our county commissioners. Through her years of employment, she brings extensive paralegal, management, and financial experience that qualifies her to deal with many issues that our commission faces.

Other candidates have touted the fact that they are “from and/or live in Oak Ridge” as making them more qualified. I believe the fact that she chose to purchase a “B” house in Oak Ridge while employed in Knoxville 10 years ago is evidence of her dedication to our city and county. Theresa continues to reside in that same house.

Theresa does not just “talk the talk,” she also “walks the walk” through her many volunteer involvements in our community. She has been very active in the city’s neighborhood Watch Program; our Secret City, Lavender, and Earth Day festivals; and the huge Cedar Hill Park rebuild project, just to name a few. [Read more…]