PROSPECT — The town’s grand list has gone up by over 1 percent.
The town’s net grand list for Oct. 1, 2014 is $823.85 million, an increase of $11.1 million or about 1.37 percent from 2013. A municipality’s grand list is a tabulation of the assessed values of real estate, personal property and motor vehicles.
Assessor James Clynes said he could not single out one specific reason for the increase other than the overall economy is getting better.
“In the last few years I’ve been here I had something specific to point to what made up those numbers. Two years ago it was the gas line that went through town and last year it was Aria (Wedding and Banquet Facility) and Toll Brothers. This year there is not one specific thing,” Clynes told the Town Council when he presented the grand list Feb. 3.
The assessed value of real estate is $710.6 million, a nearly $6.6 million or 0.87 percent increase from the 2013 grand list.
Clynes said this increase was primarily because of the work the Pennsylvania-based development company Toll Brothers is doing at the Regency at Prospect.
“They are really going to town in the back of section four there and put up a lot of new units. So, we picked up a lot of that in the grand list and anything that was there partially, whether it was just a foundation or a frame,” Clynes said.
Assessed personal property is $32.3 million, a $1.28 million or 4.12 percent increase from the 2013 grand list.
Clynes attributed the increase to companies purchasing new equipment.
Clynes said, on average, equipment depreciates in value at a rate of 10 percent a year. So, the fact that the town saw an increase in personal property means companies had to have added newer and more equipment, he said.
The assessed value of motor vehicles saw the largest increase. The assessment for motor vehicles went up $3.7 million or 4.85 percent to $80.8 million.
Clynes said there are a lot of new motorhomes and campers in town. Clynes added residents either bought or leased a lot of new cars in 2014.
“Values are up on new cars. So, apparently everyone is buying or leasing a new car. (Companies) are making it awfully attractive to lease cars this year,” Clynes said.
Using the current mill rate of 28.98, the increase in the grand list represents approximately $324,000 in new tax revenue.
“It’s always better for it to go up,” Mayor Robert Chatfield said of the increase. “I believe it’s showing that hopefully things are beginning to slowly turn around.”
Top 10 Taxpayers
Yankee Gas Services Co., $8,729,820
Connecticut Light & Power, Co., $6,139,050
Geloso Enterprises LLC, $5,768,270
Prospect Medical LLC, $5,070,120
Paulmar Associates Limited Partnership, $3,930,110
The Connecticut Water Co., $3,042,990
43 Candee LLC, $2,669,160
Toll CT Limited Partnership, $2,634,960
LRH LLC, $2,353,490
Royal Senior Holdings LLC, $2,293,800
The figures represent the combined assessment for the taxpayers. List provided by the Prospect Assessor’s Office.
