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CONLEY COMMENTARY (WSAU) – One of the first things on mayor-elect Doug Diny’s to-do list should be to shore up relations with developers in Wausau.
It’s an area where the city hasn’t had a lot of success lately. Recall that S.C. Swiderski pulled out of a retail and apartment project on the riverfront. Higher building costs and higher interest rates were cited as the reason. Wausau is ready-to-go on the long-delayed West Side Battery project, which had been stuck in limbo for years. The city’s relationship with T-Wall Enterprises, the developer of part of the downtown mall property, has blown hot-and-cold and we’re holding our breath for groundbreaking next month.
Why are these projects important? Because there are two ways to put more money into city coffers: attract new development, or raise taxes. Higher taxes and runaway spending cost the previous mayor her job.
The city is facing revaluation this year. That is, the value of all property in town is being revised to current market value. When a city has a boom in commercial development, revaluation for homeowners can be relatively painless. A new office tower brings value that can offset higher home prices. When that hasn’t happened, residential properties could face big tax hikes.
I bought an inexpensive home on Wausau’s west side four years ago. It cost $100,000. I image the fair value of the house has gone up, probably to $150,000. That’s potentially a huge tax hit for me, although usually homes are assessed slightly lower that what they’d sell for, and the tax rate will also be equalized, or lowered, to reflect the total value of properly in the city.
Wausau already has the highest property taxes in the region. Making sure they don’t go higher, in a revaluation year, is a major challenge for a new mayor. A renewed focus on economic growth is the antidote.
Chris Conley
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