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Select Board hears abatement decisions, approves auction signatory and reviews pending appeals
Summary
The board reviewed dozens of abatement requests, approved several reductions (including one parcel adjusted from $113,500 to $32,200 with a tax abatement of $1,945), denied others for insufficient evidence, authorized staff to sign purchase-and-sales at Saturday's auction, and noted multiple properties with appeals pending before the BTLA.
Assessing staff presented the Select Board with a large signature file and the 2026 tax warrant, and summarized approved and denied abatement requests. Among the approved adjustments, the assessor recommended reclassifying a six-acre railbed parcel affected by a 100-foot power-line easement to a lower "back land" valuation, reducing its assessed value from $113,500 to $32,200 and resulting in a tax abatement with interest of $1,945. The property owner, Neil Macyver, addressed the board during public comment to ask how the assessor reached those figures and to describe ongoing trespass and drug-access issues affecting the parcel.
Assessing staff said the reduction was driven by encumbrances (a long-standing power-line easement) and limited utility of the land, and recommended options such as filing current-use status to achieve longer-term tax treatment. The owner said the parcel has been a repeated access point for off-road vehicles and illicit activity and expressed appreciation that the abatement reduced his tax burden.
Staff also presented many denials where the taxpayer did not meet the statutory burden of proof; several large or contested properties (including a Walmart property and Tamron Properties LLC holdings) were noted as already or soon-to-be before the New Hampshire Board of Tax and Land Appeals (BTLA). The board did not overturn assessor denials at the meeting.
The board also approved acceptance and expenditure of a $1,723.90 settlement from the U.S. Postal Service for damage to a town vehicle and authorized a town signer to execute purchase-and-sales at the upcoming auction for the town-owned property at 40 Reservoir Road under the direction of the town attorney.
Why it matters: abatement results change individual taxpayers' bills and can affect municipal revenue; appeals to BTLA can have multi-year implications and occasionally require settlement or negotiation. The board asked staff to follow up on options the owner could pursue (current-use filing, boundary adjustments) and to provide further documentation on large pending appeals.
Next steps: assessing staff to provide clearer documentation and next-step guidance to affected taxpayers and to report back with any BTLA developments or settlement recommendations.
