Evening journal., 1913-08-28
FAVOR PURDY
ASSESSMENT
Real Estate Brokers Urge
Chamber Of Commerce to
Adopt System
RESOLUTION TO
GO BEFORE BODY

Members OF the Real Estate Brokers'
Association and directors OF the
Chamber Of Commerce met yester-
day afternoon to discuss a system Of
property assessment and taxation for
this city. While the Chamber of
Commerce has not gone on record as
tavoring any system, the Real Estate
Brokers' Association voted unani-
mously for the Chamber to recon-
mend to the Board of Assessment
Revision and Appeals, the adoption Of
the New York and Newark systems,
which are virtually the Purdy sys-
TEN. The motion to adopt this sys-
TEN came at the end of a lengthy
conference.
Those present appeared to oppose
the Somers system, because of the
fact that the tables used in that sys-
tenn to compute the value of corner
properties would not become the
property Of the city. Another objec-
ton was to the cost, $4,000.
A B. Moore, real estate dealer, ex-
pressed the thought that this city had
the material, the ability and the op-
portunity to make its own assessment
and az the same time utilize the ex-
perience of other cities.
It is practically assured that the
lChamber of Commerce will not
recommend that the Somers system
be employed unless some arrange
ment can be made under which the
city can come into permanent pos
session of the corner computation
tables.
Among the men who attended yes
terday's conference we're Presiden
Josiah Marvel, George W. Sparks
George H. McGoyern, c. D. Garrett
son. Charles w. Gooding. Thomas F
Magarity, Nathan Barsky, BENJAMIN
Schwartz, milford Taylor, ]. jackson
Pierce, ]. Bail Peirce, President D
Council William P. White, A. L
Moore, w. w. Pusey, w. H. Gibbons
lG H. Hayden and c. w. Talley.
After the meeting opened Mr.. Maj
vel said the local Chamber of Commerc
was interested in an improved system q
assessment and had learned that th
Board of Assessment, Revision and Az
peals was TO have maps prepared b
which they could make accurate an az
sesment William P. White, presiden
of City Council, stated that such map
were now being prepared. George "
Sparks was then asked TO explain brlei
" the main points in the Somers an
! Pudy systems of assessment.
The main difference, Mr. Sparks sai'
was that Somers employs an arbitrar
rule for fixing corner values while Purd
b has discarded this method and fix,
{ corner values by the iudgments of el
= perienoed men. Neither system,
, said, has given general satisfactio
1 where il has been tried out and no sy
tenn that causes an increase in asses
ments will, he added.
Mr. Sparks explained that unde
the Purdy system, after the value {
improvements on a piece Of real es
I. tate had been computed on a squar
foot basis, each taxpayer could
! shown a complete set of data whic
- contained the reasons which the as
sessment on his property had bee
fixed at a certain value,
z The superiority Of the Somers syI
n TEN. Mr. Gibbons thought was thu
Q It had mathematical rules for con
d putting corner values.
d There was a difference OF opinio
+ whether corner values fixed by arb
o trary rules we're more or less jui
o than values fixed by the judgments
j. tax appraisers.
s The special committee of the Chan
?. ber of Commerce. will report on ye
teday's work at a meeting TO be he
within a short time. Following Il
meeting Walter w. Pollock, of Clev
land, president of the Manufacturer
Appraisal Company which operat
d the Somers system, said he was sori
the real estate men had not called {
the Somers representatives TO hei
the merits of the system discussed.