FARMINGTON — Selectmen Tuesday night, July 25, were given updates on the upcoming revaluation and the status of tax acquired properties.
Interim Town Manager Cornell Knight said he met last week with KRT Appraisal staff who will be conducting the revaluation. “They will be getting started on the appraisal this fall,” he noted.
Knight referred to information provided selectmen on what is entailed in the process, phases that are gone through and frequently asked questions the public would be interested in.
“We will post this on our website, a link to the KRT website where it will have Farmington listed under Maine where you will see what they are doing,” he noted. “You will see lots of communities that they are doing work on. Once they have Farmington up we will post that in a link. People can go to the website, see the schedule for where they will be working in town, a list of streets they are covering at that moment in time.
“It has got a bunch of information on revalutions, how they do their work. It would be a good resource for the residents to stay up to date with the revaluation,” Knight added.
That information is critical for residents, Selectman Dennis O’Neil said. “They may not like the process,” he noted.
Regarding tax acquired properties, there are 15 currently, Knight said.
“On June 7 we had a list of 22 properties that had matured tax liens,” Treasurer Tammy Bureau wrote in a memo to the board. “They were all sent a “Notice of Property sale” giving them 30 days to pay or make arrangements to show a good faith attempt to pay.
“Since then, the Governor approved LD 101, An Act to Return to the Former Owner Any Excess Funds Remaining After the Sale of Foreclosed Property. With this comes new guidelines requiring the town to send revised notices. The new law requires the State Tax Assessor to generate these forms.”
The new forms are not available yet, Farmington needs to wait until they are, Knight said. The foreclosure process will have to be restarted, he noted.
“You could take action on the two the treasurer is recommending you write off,” Knight stated. “Four of the 15 are making regular payments.”
The memo indicates one property is in bankruptcy while eight have given no response to letters and are recommended for foreclosure sales.
Selectman Joshua Bell asked about one case where a payment was made and a payment agreement signed in April, if that agreement affects the foreclosure process.
Knight said he was told the agreement was vague enough that it doesn’t meet the criteria.
The new law says towns need to return any excess funds to the former owners, Knight noted. There is a list for what qualifies as costs towns can take, he added.
Selectman Stephan Bunker asked if the town was in limbo regarding foreclosures given the new law.
“Yes,” Knight answered. The process involves giving the property owners so many days to respond to the letter sent them, he noted.
The board voted to write off the two accounts as recommended. One has a balance of $110.43, the other $129.58.
“These are prior year taxes for trailers on lots that aren’t owned, no land is involved,” O’Neil said. “One has been moved, the other wiped out by Homestead Exemption. There is no realistic hope of collecting.”
“We are making progress,” Chair Matthew Smith noted. “I know there has been some movement on some others as well.”
The board also signed quitclaim deeds for six properties for which back taxes were paid.
In other business, the liquor license for The Roost was renewed and a new lunch wagon permit for Mama Liche’s — Mainely a Taco Truck was approved.
Lisa Dalrymple and her son, Zachary Dalrymple will be serving authentic Mexican cuisine. “My mom is a staple in the Spanish language department at Mt. Blue High School, is a dual citizen,” Zachary said. They have an agreement with Tumbledown Brewery to have their food truck there from May through the fall, plan to do various events as well, he noted.
“I grew up with pretty authentic Mexican food,” Zachary noted. “Our idea and concept is to bring authentic Mexican taperia food to Farmington and Franklin County. I think there is a little bit of a gap there, a little bit of a niche.
“Right now it is mom, myself, my dad who is always involved,” Zachery stated. “We hope to grow eventually to have two to six employees to run operations, do more of the day to day.”
“I love authentic Mexican and it’s not found anywhere in the Northeast,” Smith said.
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