County corrects error, reduces unbuildable parcel to $22,400 after owner showed failed perk tests

Property owner Myra (Klontz) Bumgarner appeared and described percolation tests showing the parcel — about 1.884 acres near the county line — will not support an onsite septic system. She said county records and prior tests documenting the lack of perkability were on file and that the parcel should not have been repriced as a standard home site for 2025.

County staff told the board the 2025 assessment had been entered in error as a home site and that staff corrected the neighborhood classification back to Fairview Unplatted, reinstating the historical 50% discount for no-perk/unbuildable conditions; that change reduced the parcel’s assessed value to $22,400. The county said documentation of the prior perk tests was already in the file and confirmed the correction.

Board action: The board accepted the county’s correction and the adjusted net assessed value. Staff said the owner will receive written confirmation and that the parcel will be treated with the appropriate discount going forward unless future sales or changed conditions warrant a different treatment.

Why it matters: Clerical or classification errors in a mass revaluation can significantly raise assessments on lots that are functionally unbuildable; the board’s correction underscores the value of owner-supplied technical documentation (perk tests) and the county’s process for correcting classification errors.

What’s next: County staff will issue a corrected notice to the taxpayer and retain the perk-test documentation in the parcel record; the owner was advised she may qualify for further relief if she applies for additional programs and that the correction should avoid repeated revaluation shocks.