To get the commercial and industrial assessments completed in 2024 and then thereafter, the Kosciusko County Commissioners on Tuesday put their trust into County Assessor Gail Chapman’s plan.
At their Nov. 21 meeting, the commissioners approved ending a contract with Lexur Appraisal Services (part of Vision Government Solutions), per Chapman’s request, after Lexur failed to live up to expectations in the first year of their three-year contract.
Tuesday, Chapman reported to the commissioners that the termination of the contract with Lexur was taken care of. She met with them personally last Wednesday and hand-delivered it to them.
“They received their 30-day notice. They accepted the termination. We had some discussion about some of the issues that went on during the year, and at this point I think we parted still speaking to each other, so I consider that a win-win for both sides,” she said.
Darby Davis headed up our commercial-industrial assessment department in the assessor’s office for about 28 years. She retired, and in 2022 that department was turned over to two other ladies to head it up. In the middle of 2022, one woman retired and the other determined that it was too stressful of a job and she did not want to do it. At that point, the assessor’s office had to look to contracting the services out for the commercial-industrial part of the office’s work. In September 2022, a contract was signed with Lexur to do the majority of the assessor’s office commercial-industrial work.
On Tuesday, Chapman presented a Kosciusko Commercial and Industrial Service Agreement to the commissioners.
“This is different from the contract we had with Vision in the pure essence that Frank Kelly, who is president of Nexus Ltd., is going to be training Jennifer Spyres ... who is going to be the supervisor of our commercial-industrial department. She’s already jumped in and started working,” Chapman said. “... This service agreement, I’m sure you all read it, basically encompasses all the work that will be done in commercial-industrial, but Frank will be the head of the training, but Jennifer will be beside him. She will be outside with him in all aspects of it while the training is going on.”
Chapman reiterated that the service agreement with Nexus was not like the contract the county had with Vision. The contract with Nexus is for a year at an mount not to exceed $68,500 to find out how much Spyres can learn, and then at the end of the year, Chapman will reevaluate it to figure out where Spyres is at and where she feels comfortable at and if she needs some additional training. Depending on that evaluation, Chapman will make a decision on the contract and training for 2025.
“So, I’m asking for you guys to trust me on this, that I’ve chosen the right person. I’ve talked to (County Councilwoman) Sue Ann Mitchell about it. I think she is happy with who we chose, and I think we’re going to get a lot more service for the money that we’re paying out for that this year, and then this allows us to bring it back in office, which I am extremely passionate about. That is my goal: To bring it back in office,” Chapman stated.
Commissioner Cary Groninger told her he appreciated all her hard work to try to find somebody to train up a county employee so it could be brought back in office. He did ask her if the contract with Nexus was billed by the hour.
Chapman said it will be billed by the hour, but it will not exceed the $68,000 for 2024.
“This also includes any appeals that would go to the state. His attorney would be called in on those. There’s no extra charge for that, for them to handle them at the state. There’s no overages. If he has to do more work, if there’s more involved, he’s not charging us more for it. Obviously, guys, I think this is probably a win-win for my office and for the county and for the taxpayers as well,” she said.
Commissioner Bob Conley said it’s going to be able to get the assessment done because “that’s an integral part of the tax base.” Chapman agreed it was a “very integral” part.
Chapman said she’s personally gone through every building permit they have had for the last two years.
“I know exactly what has been done, what has been looked at. We still have about - I’m going to say about 20 to 25 - that, for whatever reason, the building permits during June and July, I don’t know what they did with them because they never got looked at. I can’t answer that. So, we are physically going to go out and look at every single one of them by the end of the year, beginning of January, and we will know exactly what is done, the percentage that is done, and we’ll be able to assess that amount for Jan. 1, 2024,” she stated.
Chapman said her team has worked “very, very hard” to get it all caught up. “I’m very impressed with my office.”
Groninger made a motion to approve the agreement, Commissioner Brad Jackson seconded it and it was approved 3-0.
Councilwoman Kathleen Groninger requested the commissioners approve a one-year contract with Reedy Financial Group for 2024. The money for the contract was allocated in the 2024 budget.
“Our primary purpose in contracting with Reedy Financial is for planning purposes in the future. And so we’re really looking at them as a tool to help us help you with planning and also with the Strategic Planning Committee so that we can have a formalized plan put in place and a mechanism by which we can regularly meet to review the plan and adjust it and see how we’re doing,” she said, adding that she thinks it will be a great tool for the county.”
Conley expressed some confusion about who Reedy Financial was.
Cary Groninger reminded him the county had created a Strategic Planning Commission. Reedy Financial “is going to help us identify - once we have a strategic plan - what items we’re going to try and move forward with the fund,” he said. “One of their objectives then is to help us then figure out what funding sources we currently have and how we could be able to fund those projects or issues that we would like to move ahead on.”
He said Reedy also will be able to help the county council with some of their financial planning.
The county tried Reedy Financial Group out for six months this year, and the contract for 2024 is for the full 12 months.
The commissioners approved the contract for about $60,000. The county council will discuss it at their next meeting, Dec. 14.