The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1902-07-17
Assessed Value of Real Estate in Ke-
nosha Promises to be Eight Times
Larger Than Last Year.
ALL ASSESSED AT TRUE VALUE.
With the Heavy Assessment of Real Estate
Rate of Taxation Should be Greatly Re-
duced During the Coming Year.

City assessor Charles Ortiz and his
90 assistants have almost completed the
Herculean task of assessing the real
estate in Kenosha for another year,
and while the figures will not be given
M out for several weeks or until the as
sessment of the personal property is
completed the statement is given out
that the assessed value of the real
oo estate in Kenosha city alone will
reach the immense sum of eleven mil
lion dollars, or eight times more than
the assessment of last year.
While the assessment has been
" greatly increased the assessor holds
that the valuation of the property in
the city is only fair one and the bur-
den will no longer be borne by the
poor man with only little home.
W While the residence property has been
more than doubled all along the line,
the greater increase has been made in
the value of business property and fac
tories. Actual value, has been the
motto adopted by the assessors and in
90 almost every case they have gone over
the values together SO that the assess
ment is not in any way the work of
one man but of the three. Where it
was possible the purchase price of
property has been taken as the value
90 set for taxation and where this was
impossible the value was placed &C
cording to sales of surrounding prop
ertY.
The values set on individual pieces
90 of property have been kept secret, and
although many people nave urged the
assessor to tell the values set ne has
constantly refused, and the values
on will not be made public until the
Board of Review takes up its great
task on next Monday morning. It is
expected that there will be many OBJ
jections to the values set by the as
M SCISSORS but they are ready to ba ok
these values and their Judgment will
be upheld by the supervisor of assess
ments.
If the values as set by the assessors
M stand and the personal property re-
turned is in proportion to the realty
the city of Kenosha will collect taxes
this year on property valued at from
twelve to fifteen million dollars, or on
nearly ten times as much as the as
- sessed values of last year
~ With such a valuation the rate of
taxation in the city should be greatly
reduced and one per cent tax would
almost double the amount now re-
ceived to pay the expenses of the city.
With this reduction of the rate of tax
alton the burden of the tax will be re-
W moved from the small property owner
and placed on the men who own the
most property.
With the increased assessment the
people of the city should take some
w step to make it impossible for the city
council to levy a tax to exceed one
per cent. Five per cent. has been the
limit in the past, but there is no longer
any reason for the permission of such
90 large rate and to provide against
any extravaganza on the part of any
council legal action should te taken
to hold the rate down.
90 The assessors will complete their
work so far as the real estate is con-
cerned this week and with next week
they will begin to uncover the per
sonal property in the city. The rub |
will come at that time and it is ex-
90 pected that the crusade to get the bet |
ter Of the tax dodgers will be an in
teresting one.