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Public criticizes assessor board of equalization process and warns of restrictive short-term rental rules
Summary
A Packwood resident criticized the board of equalization (BOE) appeals process and raised concerns about proposed short-term rental restrictions following a planning commission workshop, saying the BOE process was unfair and that STR rules were being pushed without economic impact data.
Rob Maricle of Packwood used the public comment period on June 24 to relay two concerns to the Lewis County Board of Commissioners: perceived problems with the assessor's Board of Equalization appeals process and opposition to proposed short-term rental (STR) regulations under consideration by the planning commission.
On the BOE, Maricle said his appeal was denied and that when the assessor presented, "we were not allowed to question any of his information, including the fact that he did not provide to us the data that he used to generate his assessed value, although this was requested by us when the appeal was filed." He described panelists who appeared unfamiliar with the property and said the BOE denied the appeal for lack of comparables while the assessor used dissimilar STR properties to set values. "The BOE process is a sham," Maricle said, and he reminded the commissioners that the BOE is appointed by them.
On short-term rentals, Maricle said he attended a May 27 planning commission workshop and characterized the proposed regulations as severely restrictive. He quoted planning commission comments he said showed bias against STR owners, and he said no economic impact studies or data were used to justify the proposed changes. "I tell you what, I'm one of those guys who says, make the change and we'll sort it out afterwards," Maricle said, criticizing the planning process and urging commissioners to consider property rights.
The remarks were made during public comment; the transcript does not record board response or action on Maricle's concerns during this meeting.
