Housing prices have climbed for the past couple of years. The market has been a pleasant surprise for anyone selling a house, but the quorum court heard some sobering news Monday evening that will affect taxpayers throughout the county.
Assessor Jeannie Davidson painted a grim picture of the upcoming county-wide reappraisal. She said the county has gone five years without a reappraisal, the maximum period allowed by the state. The county’s growth rate may even require reappraisals every three years, she said.
Davidson explained that housing prices have soared recently, driven by the arrival of out-of-state people relocating. She said houses that have sold not long ago for $300,000 now have jumped to as much as $500,000. Those prices will affect the evaluation of other houses, even if those houses have not sold recently. The soaring prices are dramatically changing the county, and Davidson said, “I don’t know how our kids are going to be able to live here and have a house.”
Davidson said the rising prices will also affect poultry houses, although farmland will not rise as much in value. Vehicles have also climbed sharply in cost recently, and their assessed value will increase accordingly.
Justice of the Peace Harrie Farrow asked if the assessed value of a house would stay the same if it were in an unaffected area. Others at the table assured her that every area of the county has seen sharp increases in house prices. Farrow was already familiar with the housing situation in Eureka Springs. She said she has to relocate, and will have trouble finding an affordable house or apartment within the city of Eureka Springs, where her district lies.
County residents will receive their reappraisal notices in July, and the Equalization Board will convene a month later to give taxpayers an opportunity to contest any increases.
Caseloads up in district court
JPs also heard an update from District Court Judge Dale Ramsey. He explained that he conducts court in Huntsville, Eureka Springs, Berryville, and Green Forest, and his district includes Carroll and Madison counties. District courts handle traffic citations, DWIs, and other misdemeanors. Each of the four courts over which Ramsey presides has its own budget, staff, and “separate challenges.”
Ramsey began with the good news, that the county’s district courts did not have any “pressing” needs. In the near future, he said the district courts may need more staff. With sharp increases in the caseloads in district court, the clerks are “right on the edge” of needing more help. From 2019 to 2021, charges in Eureka Springs and Berryville rose from 4,600 to 8,000, a 75 percent increase. Revenues did not increase as quickly, but still went from $765,000 to $1,000,000 during that same period. Farrow asked what factors led to the increase, and Ramsey attributed a large part of that increase to the presence in the county of four state troopers writing tickets.
Ramsey thanked the quorum court for its help in the past year, especially in allocating funds to improve security. The judge said one of the clerks was assaulted last year, and others receive hostile phone calls. The district court building in Berryville now has a commercial steel door and bulletproof glass. The building is already too small, and people crowd the sidewalk outside no matter the weather. Eureka Springs faces the same lack of expansion space, along with poor Internet service and insufficient restroom facilities.
In other business:
- JP Chuck Olson, a member of the committee responsible for county buildings, said the remodel of the front of the Berryville courthouse is “coming along nicely.”
- County Judge Ronda Griffin reported that results of the county’s annual audit have come back with no negative findings.
- JPs approved Melissa Casey for a position on the Mercy Hospital board of directors. Her term will begin in July.
- Chase Tresler was approved for another term on the Carroll County Airport Commission.
- JPs approved commissioners Gary Hurst, Joan Cox, and Stan Achenbach to the Silver Summit Subordinate Service District. Judge Griffin reminded everyone that once the quorum court approves an appointment, the candidate has 10 days to come to the courthouse to be sworn. If a candidate misses that deadline, the county judge can appoint someone else to fill the vacancy.
- JPs passed an ordinance to reconcile some line items in the county budget. JP Jack Deaton said the budget committee has been very active, and similar clean-up ordinances are usually complete by February. The process took longer this year, and Deaton said some department heads are not careful with their budgets.