Jefferson Parish property owners have until Aug. 23 to challenge their latest valuations from the assessor. T-P archiveJefferson Parish Assessor Tom Capella In keeping with a seasonal requirement of state law, Jefferson Assessor Tom Capella opened the rolls for public review on Aug. 9. His office is hearing arguments from home and business owners who believe damage, renovations or...
Jefferson Parish property owners have until Aug. 23 to challenge their latest valuations from the assessor.
Jefferson Parish Assessor Tom CapellaIn keeping with a seasonal requirement of state law, Jefferson Assessor Tom Capella opened the rolls for public review on Aug. 9.
His office is hearing arguments from home and business owners who believe damage, renovations or market trends have moved their property values out of alignment with the assessments used to calculate their property tax bills.
"They can come in and look at the rolls," Capella said. "They can question their assessment."
He said taxpayers also can contact his office by telephone and mail.
On Aug. 31, the Jefferson Parish Council will serve as a board of review of the tax rolls after the assessor adds refinements from this month's challenge period. The council then could approve the rolls for 2011.
Capella on Tuesday said property owners still can raise concerns about their assessments outside the August window, but changes at other times in the year require more detailed reasons, documentation and extra approval from the Louisiana Tax Commission.
Because 2011 is not a comprehensive reassessment year, an event that occurs once every four years, most property owners are not seeing significant changes in the assessment notices he has mailed them, Capella said. Major physical alterations to properties or sharp real estate market fluctuations in particular locations are the most likely causes of assessment shifts during interim years, he said.
The next broad reassessment of all property in the parish takes place in 2012. It will be Capella's first full reassessment since leaving a seat on the Parish Council to take charge of the assessor's office in April. He replaced longtime Assessor Lawrence Chehardy and Interim Assessor Ron Maestri.
To visit the assessor's office, Capella recommends going to the General Government Building in Gretna, 200 Derbigny Street, Suite 1100. The Gretna site is larger than his east bank location and able to serve visitors more swiftly, he said.
Taxpayers needing to visit the other location can find it in the Joseph S. Yenni Building in Elmwood, 1221 Elmwood Park Boulevard, Suite 901. The offices are open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on weekdays.
The telephone number for the Gretna office is 504.362.4100. The Elmwood office is at 504.736.6370