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Petitioners allege assessor used EagleView imagery not provided in CORA responses
Summary
During a Montezuma County valuation appeal, the Villarreals said they were denied access to EagleView imagery and that the assessor relied on that material to compute square footage; the assessor disputed the characterization and said GIS measurements were used.
Petitioners Lorenzo and Susan Villarreal told the Board of Equalization they repeatedly requested GIS imagery and any EagleView data used in their property's valuation but did not receive it. Lorenzo Villarreal said the assessor and county relied on EagleView imagery "used against us" while the petitioners could not access the same images or measurements.
"When we asked for GIS imagery and other documents used against our valuation, we were not given any type of evidence from EagleView," Villarreal said, adding that the lack of access hindered their ability to "fact check" assessor measurements. The petitioners described EagleView as a flyover imagery source and characterized the missing documentation as potentially a CORA concern: "This is a borderline, if not a violation of CORA."
Assessor Lehi Bugg responded in the hearing that EagleView is a flyover imagery provider and that the assessor's office uses GIS measures; "EagleView is not a numbering system," Bugg said, and she emphasized the office does not measure interior space. Bugg told the board the assessor used GIS-derived measurements to calculate square footage for mass appraisal and that some outbuilding measurements will be adjusted in the assessor's records in 2027.
The transcript records the disagreement but does not include evidence that the assessor withheld EagleView data in contravention of CORA. The Board did not resolve the CORA-related allegation during the hearing; petitioners may pursue separate records requests or legal remedies outside the equalization hearing.
