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Iola Town Board denies excessive-assessment claim

 An excessive assessment claim was denied by the Iola Town Board at its March 31 meeting.

A claim of unlawful taxes and excessive assessments for 2013 was filed by property owner Christopher Piotrowski. He claimed he was over-assessed by $73,000 for property he had recently purchased.

The board determined that the matter should have been brought to the town’s board of review in May 2013.

“You can see it’s blatant excessive assessment,” Piotrowski said. “We’re not a little ways off, we’re excessively off. It should be worth what we paid for it.”

Town supervisor Tony Cisewski noted that properties do not always sell at their assessed value.

Piotrowski also claimed the assessor made an unlawful visit to his property because he was not informed.

Cisewski reported that Town Assessor Kelly Zillmer did leave notes at the property.

“If the assessment changes, we will send a notice,” Cisewski said. “It didn’t change, so no notice was needed.”

He noted Piotrowski failed to show up at the 2013 board of review.

“I took it that the assessor would do his job,” Piotrowski said.

Cisewski said the board needed to agree with the assessor and with the recommendations of the town’s attorney.

“The statutory basis for recovering an unlawful tax is not present in this circumstance,” Attorney Bruce Meagher stated in a letter to the town board.

In the letter, which was also presented to Piotrowski at the meeting, Meagher explained that the only four bases on which a claimant can proceed included: A clerical error; assessment on property which does not exist; an assessment on exempt property; or assessment on property not located in the municipality.

The attorney further stated in the letter that “the township did fulfill its obligation with regard to the procedures which must be followed prior to the issuance of the tax bills for 2013.”

Meagher’s letter recommended that the board deny the claim.

The board agreed unanimously with its attorney’s recommendation.

“Eventually you’re going to get tired of jumping through loop holes,” Piotrowski said. “My next step is circuit court, then the state board of review.”

The board set the 2014 board of review for 6:30 p.m. Monday, May 19, with open book from 4-6 p.m.

Piotrowski asked if the board of review was for reviewing his 2013 taxes or his 2014 taxes.

He was informed that it would only be for a review of the 2014 taxes, and the 2013 taxes would remain the same.

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