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Resident urges St. Augustine to seek PILOTs from local college, raises property tax-exemption concerns
Summary
Public commenter BJ Calais said a significant share of properties in St. Augustine are tax-exempt and asked whether the college endowment is tax-exempt; she suggested the college should make payments in lieu of taxes to support services the city provides.
BJ Calais (self-identified as a West City resident) used public comment time to call attention to what she characterized as a large share of tax-exempt properties in the city and urged the commission to consider payments in lieu of taxes (PILOTs) from the college across the street.
Calais said, as she stated it in public comment, that "the city of Saint Augustine has 906,700,000 or 21.62% of properties exempt, also known as not paying property taxes, which burdens others." She asked whether the college's endowment is now above $100,000,000 and noted that city paving projects were paid with property tax dollars as part of the capital-improvement program, not Community Redevelopment Agency funds.
Why it matters: requests for PILOTs or changes in how tax-exempt properties contribute to local services can affect city revenue and the distribution of local costs among taxpayers. Calais framed her remarks as a fairness concern: that exempt properties and institutions are not paying for services that benefit them.
What the transcript shows
- Claim and request: Calais presented specific figures ("906,700,000" and "21.62%") and asked whether the nearby college is exempt and whether its endowment exceeds $100 million. The remarks were posed as questions and public comment rather than formal requests or motions.
- Context: Calais said recent street paving was funded from property-tax-supported CIP dollars rather than CRA funds. She asked the commission to consider PILOT arrangements to cover services received.
- Status: This was public comment. No staff response with verified figures or follow-up action was recorded during the special meeting; commissioners did not take formal action on the points during this session.
Follow-up recommended
Because Calais cited specific numeric claims, staff follow-up to confirm exemption counts, the share of assessed value that is tax-exempt, whether the college is tax-exempt, and whether any voluntary PILOT discussions exist would clarify the record for commissioners and the public. The transcript shows the comment was closed and commission business resumed.
