Residents urged Mount Vernon officials on Aug. 13 to address rising property taxes, school closures and alleged financial mismanagement, while the city's comptroller outlined audit delays and the status of tax-lien sales.

Resident Beryl Gilling, a property owner at 145 South Second Avenue, told the council she and other longtime homeowners are "disappointed and upset at the city's declining direction," citing higher taxes, services she described as declining, abandoned buildings and school closures. "Leadership matters," Gilling said, adding that some residents feel taxed without seeing corresponding services.

Council members acknowledged those concerns and explained limits on the city’s authority over schools. Councilwoman Caitlin Gleason said school closures stem largely from declining enrollment and school-board decisions, not direct city control. Council members encouraged residents to attend school-board meetings to raise those issues.

In a detailed presentation, the city's comptroller summarized why several city financial audits remain incomplete and outlined next steps. The comptroller said the city expects the 2020 audit to be completed within weeks, and that 2021 field work is largely done. "We cannot... begin the process of getting a credit rating back until we complete these audits," the comptroller said, and emphasized the interdependence of city audits with independent agencies such as the Board of Water Supply and the Urban Renewal Agency.

The comptroller also reported on tax-lien sale activity. A tax-lien sale held June 23, 2025, included about $11,118,000 in liens scheduled for sale; bidders purchased roughly $613,000, leaving roughly $11,000,000 unsold. The comptroller said the unsold liens have been advanced to the “interim foreclosure process,” a legal pathway the city will now pursue; the next tax-lien sale session is scheduled for Sept. 24, 2025, and will focus on more recent arrears (2020–2021) that may be more likely to sell. The comptroller described the interim foreclosure process as lengthy and legal in nature.

The comptroller also noted technical and software issues that delayed audits, including accounting-software transitions at the Board of Water Supply that complicated reconciliations. The office is preparing monthly budget-to-actual reports and a second-quarter financial report for the council.

Why it matters: Residents said rising taxes and school closures are driving community concern; the comptroller’s update shows the city is working through multi-year audit and collections issues that affect fiscal transparency, credit rating prospects and the city’s ability to manage revenues.

Next steps: Council members and staff said they will continue outreach on property and school issues and pursue the next tax-lien sale and interim foreclosure steps. The comptroller will provide updated cash-flow and audit-status reports in the coming weeks.