Evening journal., 1913-07-29
SOMERS' TAX
ASSESSMENT
EXPLAINED
Chamber Of Commerce Will Get
Idea Of Purdy Flan Before
Recommending Change
FIX $3.50 As FOOT
VALUE UF CITY PLOT

Directors Of the Chamber OF Commerce
Went ON record yesterday afternoon as
faNofine scientific tax SYSTEM Tor VIII
mineton when they adopted resolutions
uf1inn the Board Of Assessment. keNis-
ION and Appeals to eAeicise tue power
given them Dy the lass Legislature to
iaNe sucl am assessment made. ihe
RESOLUTION was Adopted after Walter n.
SWeecng and Walter W. loilocN, repre-
sentatnes of the Somers SYSTEM of as,
sessine property had explained in minute
detail the workings ol the system.
The explanation was made in the
Chamber of Commerce rooms Mayor
Howell President OF Council Nhite aud
Councilman StoNer were present. Al
though the directors did MT favor any
ssstem. it was dcciled 90 visit New
York on next Tuesday. whore the purdy
system of assessing property wl be
looked into Those who win make the
tlip aie losith Marvel, George W..
Sparks. c. y Gariettson, @. e.. purdy
and a ID. Warner. who Weie appointed
as a committee. lhey will report at a
meeting 10 be aeld later.
10 demonsime the ease with which
the Somcrs system can he understood
the men lt the meeting aided by the
tax experts. proceeded 20 hX the as
sessment values on the ploi Of ground
desired for the new county and mu-
nicipal building Mr. Swcetng after
being informed that Tive prices for the
land rcr foot ranged from $3.50 20 $50,
according to Various real estate brokers',
proceeded to show the mcmhcls present
how 10 arrive ats proper VALUATION OF
the plos.
According TO the Somcrs system
plan The unit foot q foot front run
ninr 100 feet deep. was decided 10 be
the most valuable IN the block at
Tenth and Market streets. where the
DUPONT building stands fronting on
Market street The unit foot in this
block was taken as representing 100
per cent and worth 8 500. BY con-
tinued debating and agreements, the
pr0portionatc value OF unit feet In
surrounding blocks was determined.
Thus on Market street Between Ninth
and Tenth. the proportion was 90
per cent. on Market between l1lev-
enth and Twelfth was 90 per cent
on, King between Ninth and Tenth
was 10 per cent. and on King he
tween Tenth and Eleventh was 20
per cent.
The proportion on Eleventh street
between King and French was placed
at 5 per cent Allowing for the lot
TO have frontage on two streets and
70 be 239 feet deep the unit foot value
81 land for the plot in question was
fxed at $3.50 This corresponds near
~ to the lower estimates placed on
the properties by the real estate
dealers.
T.. .,.,,i, 81 Ca ,,,,orfio, nc "a fho
hinerenccs between the purdy and
the Somers system Mr. Sweeting
Aaid the Somers syatem was a sys-
Gem Of assessing while the Purdy sys
tenn was one of recording The speak
ers showed that the strong point In
their system Is that tho value of tho
unit foot in each section OF the city
Is appraised by the peonle living In
Ihat community al a public meeting
and that with this unit value deter
mined 1t was question only of math-
cmatical routine to iiX the assessed
ralue of any given property IN the
reizhborhood.
M The Somcrs people contend also
~that then method of fixing the values
.,of corner lots is also much more com-
1letc than that employed by the Pur-
d system
Alr Sweeiin1 said be figured the oX.
fcits n thc employ oi ihf Manuilctur-
ts ArWnisll Company. by whom he Is
Employed could DO their part Of their
a.sessmcnt hy january I, 1914. and that
the total c-i would re from sl2ooO 20
Slan.u. He said he would have charge
of tie work on land values while n
building expert would pass ON the build.
ipg ,aine-.
All .t4 .f.....l f- a.. c,,,..a
sSstcm IS that it rqlllizes zeal estate
tss.cs,mCnts But in every city where
tae system has been applied certain coll
lateral benefits have resulted The
tticf OF these Is o. reduction in the tax
fite. mlio possible by The equalization
and in pant hy bc discovery of hitherto
nnfssos. al realty. In Houston. Texas
cno owner laid $1,000. in back taxes
thcn his previous Illegal eNemI ton was
>disco,cfol The methods followed in
AprlYng the Somers system account foi
eVery foot of land So 1t Is impossible
" miss any property.
IN closing his Iemarks. Mr.. Sweetins
Said the somers system had been adopt
fd IN thirteen cities. and that ninety PEI
cent OF the citizens of those cities hao
endorsed the systom.
~ lu Dcs Moines n large amount o
-under-assessed property was found. 10
ell SS4l5.O0O, and the city Is preparing
4 make a considerable cut in the tll
fate Ont Of nine hundred and ,ixtoei
assessmcnts- seven hundred and twi
c1efe increased two hundred and five re-
1uced aud nine were unchanged August.
hcduced its basis of assessment from 81
Yer cent. TO 60 2.3 per cent. Houston re
fliced IT, rate from Sl7o TO Sl.35. ani
IA
Gties made similar readnstmcnt.