Harrah's Tax Value Decision Could Have Huge Effect on Pattonville School District
The Pattonville School District could stand to gain more than $3 million or lose more than $1 million depending on the outcome of the Harrah's personal property tax value. A decision is expected in September.
With St. Louis County Assessor Jake Zimmerman and Harrah's Casino at odds over how much the Maryland Heights-casino is actually worth, officials at the Pattonville School District are anxiously awaiting a decision to see how the district should move forward in balancing its budget.
Zimmerman believes the value of the casino should be raised from $152 million to $439 million. That would mean the casino would owe $14.3 million in property taxes—up more than $8 million from what it paid last year.
The decision has a ripplee effect on Maryland Heights, especially its largest school system.
If Zimmerman's value is sustained — the county's board of equalization will decide by mid-September on the value —the district would gain $3.6 millin in operating levy funds and $600,000 in debt levy funds. If Harrah's gets its way — a $30 million valuation — then Pattonville school would lose $1.5 million in operating levy funds and $200,000 in debt levy funds.
According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the casino's lead attorney, Dan Peters, with the St. Louis firm of Herzog Crebs, argued that Zimmerman had wrongly conflated the sales price — which includes the ability of a business to generate revenue — with the physical value of the property, such as its slot machines, restaurant fixtures and parking garages.
In May, Penn National bought Harrah's for $610 million.
Meanwhile, Pattonville officials continue their attempts to combat an increasingly grim budget scenario.
According to district documents, the economic downturn has lasted much longer than Pattonville officials anticipated. In fact, the district will run out of cash in five years if school officials don't act balancing the budget.
"Expense reductions alone will not be able to address the shortfall without a significant impact on how we educate students, and the quality of their education," a presentation made to the board earlier this month states.
Without change in budget structure, the district would be $5 million in debt in just three to four years.
For more on the school district's budget scenario, read Maryland Heights Patch's story on what officials could do to combat the issue.
For more on Harrah's battle with the county assessor, read the St. Louis Post-Dispatch's article on the matter.
In This article
-
Harrah's St. Louis Casino
777 Casino Center Dr, Maryland Heights, MO -
Maryland Heights Government Center
11911 Dorsett Rd, Maryland Heights, MO -
-
PaulRevere
12:44 pm on Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Finally, a topic that touches everyone.
My Headline would be in reverse
" PATTONVILLE SCHOOL DISTRICT B-U-D-G-E-T Has a HUGE AFFECT ON CASINO TAX VALUATION DECISION".
Arbitrary valuations to "suit" the bloated budgets of Public schools is NOT in the best interest of Pattonville residents.
Every one of our homes has different "arbitrary" valuations to support a Government run Public school system. A system budget that is 70-85% for Salaries and benefits of Educators. Automatic Guaranteed raises based on "your home value" is absurd. A casino has No VOTE.
There is no plausible argument for even requiring a CASINO property to Support "EDUCATION". Prior 1994 , there was ZERO Casino tax revenue. There was NO casino. Yet there was Pattonville Education.
One wonders how many casino jobs are affected by onerous transfer of money to very well paid Teachers. Schools already get a casino $3 per patron fee cut.
Everyone using the casino pays for every penny "dealt" to the schools.
Yet, it is the Residents and, those using the casino for music and gaming that would pay for ALL the additional taxes imposed by the assessor.
Siphoning more Real estate tax to "Teacher Pay increases" is what the Pattonville School officials want to Balance the Budget.
Instead of Asking for Pay sanity from All levels of educators, Pattonville wants to Tax the Heck out of a CASINO. Something, anything that avoids charging the "USERS" (that's You- Mr Mrs homeowner ) the cost of school operations.
PaulRevere
1:04 pm on Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Additionally, this country is being bombarded with "FAIRNESS".
Let's talk about Casino value vs. Your home or auto fairness values.
Let's talk about smaller gas stations by the Casino.
A gas station is "commercial Property"
Your Home is "Residential"
If a gas station is valued at $200,000 and your home is valued at $200,000, why is the School tax almost doubled for the Gas station.
Two properties --same value-- both pay substantially different Real estate taxes.
IS THAT FAIR?
Do you actually think that gas station is taking the loss of his enormous real estate tax? Of course not. You are paying for that tax also.
So , unless all residents start screaming for more "sanity" in taxing everything that "moves" or "built" or "consumed" in the "NAME OF EDUCATION", you will all be taxed to Death.
IT's "OUR EDUCATION BUDGETS THAT NEED SCRUTINY" .
Ask for the pay schedules of our education system. Ask for the Benefits that are paid from your tax dollars. Ask for the 29.5% cost put into teacher pensions.
Ask for the almost 100% full medical coverages, far superior than you or your spouse could ever imagine. Ask , why a teacher should retire at age 57, with $60,000 to $150,000 pensions, while you can hope for a $20,000 annual penson from social security.
NO-- THIS IS NOT CASINO VALUATION PROBLEM---IT IS AN EDUCATION FUNDING SYSTEM PROBLEM.
Education Budgets based on how much schools could get rather than affordability are WRONG. Every voter can correct that.