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09/20/2018 12:01 AMNext Tuesday, Sept. 25, Killingworth will vote on whether to buy the Venuti property for $6.25 million. Polls will be open from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. at Killingworth Elementary School, 340 Route 81. Absentee ballots are available for those who cannot be there on Sept. 25.
The Board of Selectmen and the Board of Finance voted more than a year ago to send this question to referendum, to give the people of the town the opportunity to decide it. The price on offer was $6.25 million, and the seller was not open to negotiation on that amount. We delayed the vote until this month in light of last year’s great uncertainty about state funding and other budget matters.
Is the property worth $6.25 million? This is the question the referendum will answer. Appraisals can tell us something about fair market value, but since the town cannot buy land somewhere else in the state that might be a better deal, appraisals don’t tell the town what it’s worth to us.
For reference, the most recent appraisal commissioned by the town was done in November 2014; it valued the property at $2.7- to $3.2 million. In October 2016, the Venuti family received an appraisal of $6.4 million. Both appraisals are available in the Town Clerk’s Office and online at townofkillingworth.com under public notices.
In this instance, the town didn’t go looking for a piece of property for a particular purpose. However, the Venuti property is unique, and the town might want to acquire it to keep its options open for the future. Many uses have been envisioned, ranging from a town swimming facility to housing for seniors or young families. If the town owned the land, other possibilities would no doubt emerge.
It has been pointed out that the actual cost over the life of the bond will be higher, just like a mortgage. The total cost of the bond—which, by the way, is about $8.5 million—is already reflected in our projection that the purchase would result in a two-thirds of a mil increase in the tax rate. At present, for a median-priced home in Killingworth—$385,000, assessed at $270,000—that would increase taxes by roughly $180 per year. Changes in the Killingworth Grand List could alter the impact on individual property owners. And this projection does not include any costs of managing the property, which will depend on its use.
Note, too, that the present assessed value of the property reflects the fact that most of it is currently classified as open space and taxed, by statute and ordinance, at a much lower rate than residential property. So the assessed value does not indicate its market value.
Killingworth townspeople discussed this purchase at two well-attended meetings, one on June 4 and one on Sept. 11. Thanks to the Haddam-Killingworth High School Media Program, both meetings were videotaped and are available on YouTube. The easiest way to find them is to search for “Venuti Property.”