By Susan MacEachron

The Board of Assessment Appeals held three sessions in March for Norfolk residents seeking to dispute the assessed value of their personal property or real estate. The three-member board lowered assessed values for 23 homeowners for a total reduction in the Grand List of approximately $750,000.

Chair Walter Godlewski said 33 people submitted appeals and 30 people showed up for their scheduled hearing. The board decreased the assessed value for 23 people and denied requests submitted by seven others, but did not increase the assessed value of any property. Godlewski noted in a phone call that most people do not realize that the board has the authority to increase an assessment during an appeal. He also said that all determinations were unanimous with a member abstaining in one case.

Godlewski said that a number of those appealing their valuation were impacted by Norfolk’s two significant environmental disasters, the 2022 gas spill and the 2023 bridge outages on Smith Road and Old Goshen Road. The board developed formulas for each of these events and Godlewski said the formulas helped ensure that everyone was treated fairly. He further noted that three properties accounted for a third of the valuation reduction. Two lowered assessments reflected the impact of the gas spill; in the third case, an unfinished attic had been assessed as living space.

The decrease of $750,000 represents less than one percent of Norfolk’s Grand List of approximately $366 million. Property owners will be able to estimate their July 1 tax bill once the Board of Finance approves a budget for 2025-2026 and sets a mill rate.