Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, April 6, 1993 TAG: 9304060381
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
COUNCIL TO STUDY ENDING TAX BREAKS
City Manager Bob Herbert said Monday that tax breaks for the owners of agricultural land might be outdated for a city the size of Roanoke.City Council agreed to take up the issue during its upcoming study for a new budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1.
Mayor David Bowers has recommended that council repeal the policy that allows agricultural property to be assessed for taxes based on its use rather than its fair market value.
Herbert said the low assessment on farmland is a remnant from the mid-1970s when the city annexed nearly 16 square miles of Roanoke County.
The annexed territory included hundreds of acres of farmland in addition to extensive commercial, industrial and residential development.
In an effort to ease the transition for farmland owners who found themselves in the city, council agreed to allow their property to be assessed for agricultural use.
Nearly two decades after the farmland was annexed, Herbert said, it is appropriate and timely for council to determine whether the tax breaks should be ended.
Several council members said they were willing to consider Bowers' recommendation, but they will wait for a budget study next month to make up their minds.
On the surface, Bowers' proposal seems to be fair, Councilman James Harvey said, but he wants to see how it fits into the city's comprehensive plan.
Vice Mayor Beverly Fitzpatrick Jr. said he doesn't want to do anything that would hurt the city's chances to attract new businesses because it has no large tracts of farm or vacant land.
If the assessments were based on market value and the taxes were higher, there would be more pressure on the owners to sell their property for development, Fitzpatrick said.
If the taxes were raised and there was no demand for large tracts, he said, property owners might be pressured to sell smaller parcels just to pay the taxes.
"You could end up with a motel in the middle of a tract that is desirable for industrial development," Fitzpatrick said. "I want to make sure that doesn't happen."
If the city repeals the agriculture assessment, Councilman Howard Musser said, he hopes that some of the land would be used for residential development for middle- and upper-income residents.
"We need more land where more housing can be built, especially for higher-income people," Musser said.
Musser said that one of the city's goals is to encourage development of more single-family houses to help balance the increase in multi-family rental housing.
Fitzpatrick said most of the farmland near the Interstate 581 and Hershberger Road interchange should be preserved for commercial development. But he said there is some farmland in the Southwest part of the city that might be suitable for residential development.
There are 670 acres in the city with agricultural assessments. Most of the land is in outlying areas of the city, with the heaviest concentration in the vicinity of Valley View Mall and the I-581-Hershberger Road interchange.
Under the agricultural-exemption policy, much of the vacant land around the Hershberger interchange is taxed at only a fraction of its market value.
Some property owners oppose Bowers' proposal, saying it would encourage piecemeal, rather than controlled and orderly, development. And others said it might force them to stop farming.
The agricultural policy enables the owners to hold onto their property without financial hardship and then sell it for large, attractive developments that benefit the entire city, said John Bradshaw.
Bradshaw, a spokesman for the Andrews family that owns 60 acres on Thirlane Road, said the city was able to get the United Parcel terminal two years ago because the owners kept their property until they could sell it for one development.
Bradshaw, a member of the city Planning Commission, said the city never could have gotten the UPS terminal if the owners had not been able to keep the property so that it was available when USPS was looking for a site.
\ ROANOKE CITY COUNCIL\ IN OTHER ACTION\ \ Tax-freeze income: Council agreed to consider a request that it increase the income limit for eligibility for the real estate tax freeze for elderly homeowners from $22,000 to $30,000. Edmond Damus, an elderly homeowner, said he believes the city can afford to raise the limit. He he has been pressing for it for four years. Elderly homeowners are eligible for the tax freeze if they make less than $22,000 a year.\ \ Trash budget: Council approved a $7.6 million budget for the Roanoke Valley Resource Authority for the fiscal year that begins July 1. The dumping fees for the new Smith's Gap landfill will be $50 a ton for the local governments and $55 a ton for private trash haulers.\ \ Delinquent taxes: Council authorized the city attorney's office to file a lawsuit to force the sale of nine pieces of property with delinquent real estate taxes totaling approximately $22,000. City Attorney Wilburn Dibling said the taxes are delinquent three or more years.