Tax man cometh this summer

“Let me tell you how it will be
There’s one for you, nineteen for me
‘Cause I’m the taxman
Yeah, I’m the taxman”
–The Beatles

By Charles Sercombe
Hamtramck homeowners may have noticed by now that their summer property tax bills went up by almost 4.5 mils.
The extra mills are a one-time only hike, and the extra money will go to settle some outstanding bills.
The city is obligated, under a court-agreed-upon tax judgment, to pay for the following three issues:
o Legal fees for the Sarah Garrett housing discrimination lawsuit.
o Settlement in a lawsuit over sewer flooding that caused home damages.
o Settlement for a police brutality case.
In all, the tax will generate a little over $1 million, and will cost the average homeowner anywhere from an extra $50 to $200, or perhaps the cost of a couple – or three — family barbecues.
However, commercial property owners will face a much steeper hit, as high as $1,000 more.
It’s thought that this latest payment for the housing discrimination lawsuit will finally end the decades-long legal fees that have been costing around $400,000 a year.
The city is putting the final button on that lawsuit with the construction of the last three housing units (out of 200 that had been required, in a settlement with the plaintiffs of the case).
It took millions of dollars to fund the housing, but the city was able to get various federal, state and county grants to pay for the bulk of the costs.
As for the flooding issue, the city had previously agreed, in an earlier lawsuit settlement, to begin overhauling the city’s sewage system, but that will come in stages that could easily end up taking years — and an estimated $50 million.
As to the police brutality case: this wasn’t the first, and likely not the last case involving misconduct by officers. The city has been hit with several in recent years, but all of the officers involved in the various cases have been dismissed, with at least one officer, convicted of a felony, who is now serving time in prison.
Even though there is a vetting process for new hires in the police department, it can be impossible to predict when an officer might go rogue in a particular situation.
Posted July 14, 2023