ATHOL — With two members absent Tuesday night, the town’s Selectboard quickly dispensed with some housekeeping matters — property tax classification and a new polling place — before adjourning after little more than a half hour.
The first order of business was a tax classification hearing.
“Tonight,” said Lisa Aldrich, Athol’s principal assessor, “we’re going to talk about whether or not we’re going to have a single tax rate, or shift the burden away from the residents slightly and onto the commercial. If we have a single tax rate, we’re looking at a proposed rate of $17.18 (per $1,000 of property value), which is down 27 cents from last year, because our property values went up, overall, 6.7 percent. We’re still seeing increases, and we’re still likely to see increases again next year.”
“Our average single family (home) value,” she continued, “went from $163,300 to $174,300. And the average tax bill is increasing about $145 for the year.”
Aldrich then pointed out that splitting the tax rate would drop the residential tax rate slightly, from $17.18 to $15.63. The rate for commercial, industrial, and personal property would jump to $25.77.
“Typically,” Aldrich told the board, “for a community with a minimum of 27 percent commercial, industrial, and personal property, that would be the minimum to shift. We’re at 14.9 percent, so we’re still well below that and it would have a detrimental effect, I believe – and the board (of assessors) believes – on our businesses. But it’s up to you whether you want to go with a single rate or splitting the rate.”
“We’ve had a single rate in this town forever,” said Town Manager Shaun Suhoski. “Speaking from my economic development background, it’s going to help us on the commercial and industrial side, so I would leave it as is.”
“I believe that’s part of the reason we’ve had such a lot of investment by businesses here,” said board Chair Rebecca Bialecki, “and why we’ve been open to development up at the Market Basket plaza and beyond. I think we’re still needing to see that kind of growth continue.”
In the absence of members Lee Chauvette and William Chiasson, the board voted unanimously to stick with a single tax rate.
Town Clerk Nancy Burnham then proposed to the board that the location for voting be changed.
“So, in 2020, we have a little thing called the presidential election,” said Burnham. “We actually have four elections scheduled for 2020. We have the presidential primary on March 3, the town election, I think, is April 6, the state primary – they’re still working on the date – and the big one Nov. 3.”
“To prepare for that,” she went on, “I’ve been looking at what I’m going to need; the equipment, the workers. Voter turnout is predicted to be record-breaking across the country. And, as much as I love the Senior Center and the Grand Room, and they’ve been great down there, unfortunately the space is just not large enough to accommodate a presidential election.”
Burnham then said that, with the recent removal of several offices from the location, Memorial Hall would be the “ideal location” for balloting. She added that the state had taken a look at the location and determined it does meet requirements for accessibility for the elderly and handicapped. She also said she had developed plans to accommodate parking needs.
In the wake of Burnham’s presentation, the board voted without dissent to relocate the town’s polling station from the Senior Center to Memorial Hall at Town Hall.