Saugus sets tax rate; resident doubts accuracy of assessment process

SAUGUS – The Board of Selectmen voted Tuesday to set a tax rate but at least one resident is warning taxpayers not to put a lot of stock in their assessments.The board voted 4-1 with Stephen Horlick voting against a motion to increase taxes for the average family by $184, which will send bills roughly from $3,173 to $3,357.Atherton Street resident Maureen Dever, however, asked the board to not set a tax rate because she feels the assessment process is seriously flawed.According to Dever there are 11 homes on her street. The value of 10 homes went down, including three income producing two family homes while one home, hers, went up $40,000.And she said she believes it was personal.Town Manager Andrew Bisignani called that statement absurd and Chairman of the Board of Assessors Dr. Frederick Wagner was offended by her accusations.Dever said she asked no less than four times within the allotted five day disclosure period to have her home reassessed and nothing happened. She said she even had an appointment for the assistant assessor to do the job but Deputy Assessor Ron Keohan canceled the appointment claiming the assistant was not qualified to do the assessment.Keohan said Dever came in on the last day of disclosure with only a few hours to go and asked for a reassessment. While he said he will reassess her home he couldn’t have done so prior to Tuesday’s meeting.Selectman Michael Kelleher asked if it would disadvantage taxpayers in any way to set the rate even though their assessments are being questioned.Dever conceded that it would not accept that she would no longer be eligible for a reassessment and would have to file for an abatement, which she didn’t think was fair. She said according to the assessor’s own manual her issue should be handled with a reassessment not an abatement.Keohan said if the board were to take Dever up on her request and not set the rate or open up five additional days of disclosure it would essentially send the town back to square one in the assessment process.”In all probability we would not have a tax rate set for this fiscal year,” he said.”Dever was not the only one questioning the assessments. Golden Hills resident Teresa Katsos said her valuation went up 22 percent while her neighbors all went down anywhere from six to nine percent.”I’m concerned that property on Route 1 seems to be stagnating while residential is skyrocketing,” she said.Katsos said she too believed there were improprieties in the assessment process.”Everything we do, nothing happens in the Assessors Office that isn’t governed by state law,” Keohan said.Following the vote Dever said taxpayers shouldn’t take any comfort in the process used to reach the tax assessments.”Personally this does raise red flags,” she said. “In light of the fact I asked no less than four times for a reassessment, in light of the fact I had an appointment for a reassessment and it was cancelled . . . I do think it was personal and I think people need to look carefully at their assessments.”