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Board orders one-year reduction to homeowner's land value after road construction raised berm adjacent to backyard
Summary
John Hebert obtained a temporary 2025-26 reduction in land valuation after the board concluded the newly constructed, raised roadway behind his property created a temporary obsolescence affecting marketability; the reduction is limited to the current tax year and may be revisited next year.
John Hebert told the board his taxable value jumped by roughly $36,400 with no improvements and that a recent cut-and-fill method for a regional road had left a berm about 12 feet above his backyard, increasing dust, safety concerns and likely harming marketability. "The total taxable amount on the property increased by $36,400.03 ... in 1 year with no improvements," Hebert said.
Assessor staff explained that aerial imagery captured two 8-by-40 shipping containers that had been added and that a land-value allocation across the reappraisal area had driven most of the increase. After board discussion about temporary economic obsolescence and whether market evidence existed to show a permanent decline, members voted to apply a temporary obsolescence reduction for the 2025-26 tax year, reducing the taxable land value on the parcel to $85,000. The board recorded the motion as a temporary one-year adjustment and encouraged Hebert to seek appraisals and to pursue city contacts on safety mitigations.
Why it matters: The decision shows the board will consider limited, temporary adjustments when unique local public-works changes substantially affect a property's marketability, but it emphasized that a taxpayer seeking a permanent adjustment needs stronger market-comparison evidence or a contrarian appraisal.
