WHEATLAND, N.Y. — Thousands of people opened and paid their school tax bill this month, but no one had the sticker shock like the people in the town of Wheatland. What they saw was an increase of $700 to $1,000.

The problem started after the sale of a large apartment complex called Clearview Farms. A couple of years ago it sold for $49 million. When the new owners complained about their assessment, it got lowered by the Wheatland assessor by $36 million. Every other property in this town had to absorb that loss, and they saw it in their school tax bill.

“Well Berkeley, I was surprised because it was about an 18% increase,” said Jim Musshafen, a taxpayer who is also the president of the Wheatland-Chili school board. For Musshafen, 18% means a $1,000 increase on his school tax bill.

Berkeley Brean, News10NBC: “And the increase again you saw Tom was?”

“About $700 or $800 year over year,” said Wheatland resident Tom Widell about his tax increase.

In a post on the town website, the town supervisor explained what happened in three facts:

1. In 2022, Clearview Farms was bought for $49 million.
2. The assessment went from $9 million to $45 million and that actually reduced tax bills.
3. The complex assessment was then dropped to the original amount, $9 million.

That created a $35 million loss. The Wheatland-Chili school superintendent said that caused a $650,000 gap in the school budget. The only way to make it up was in the tax bill that people like Musshafen and Widell got.

The school district posted about the bills on Facebook on Friday:

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/9HU3JkeDAH2ZWpRw

“What’s bothering me about this is the lack of transparency and how one individual being a town assessor can make these types of changes on their own,” Musshafen said. “It’s created a problem for every single Wheatland resident.”

News10NBC Chief Investigative Reporter Berkeley Brean called the town assessor, but it went to voicemail after a couple of rings saying he’ll be unavailable from the 10th to the 17th. Brean went to the town hall and the assessor’s office was closed. The town supervisor and school superintendent declined to talk on camera and referred Berkeley to their posted statements.

“Certainly, I think something needs to be done with the assessment of Clearview Farms. And I think some answers need to be given based on how did this happen and why was this allowed to happen?” Widell said.

The Wheatland-Chili school board has a meeting Monday night. The next tax bill that goes out is the town tax and the Wheatland supervisor told Brean that they are working on their budget right now to try to reduce, as much as they can, that sticker shock when that tax bill comes in January.

Most assessors are appointed by their town boards to a six-year term. The Wheatland assessor’s term is set to expire next September.

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