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About Polk County itemizer observer. (Dallas, Or) 1992-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 21, 2015)
Polk County News Polk County Itemizer-Observer • October 21, 2015 5A Taxes: Bills in the mail this week ‘Splash’ a spooky good time Continued from page 1A Because RMV as of Jan. 1, grew an average of 8.2 percent, a lot of these owners could see increases greater than 3 percent in their taxes. That uptick in RMV in- creases the countywide total to $7.58 billion. There are urban renewal districts operating within the cities of Salem, Dallas, Independence and Mon- mouth. “From these combined urban renewal districts, $2,688,079 ($1,846,715, Salem; $144,171, Dallas; $448,370, Independence; $248,823, Monmouth) in taxes will be collected from the Division of Tax and Levies that goes to- ward urban renewal proj- ects,” Schmidt said. Treasurer Linda Fox said statements were mailed this week and taxes are due by Nov. 16. Schmidt encourages property owners to review their tax statement for ac- curacy of information, such as the correct owner- ship, mailing and location address. If there are any questions or changes need- ed, contact the Assessor’s Office at 503-623-8391. There are options for paying your property taxes. You can mail in your tax payment, bring it to the Tax Collectors Office in the courthouse or use the on- line payment program. If you have questions about where to pay your taxes or how to pay your taxes, call the Tax Office at 503-623- 9264. If you disagree with the RMV placed on your prop- erty, you can have your property reassessed for free by calling the asses- sor’s office at 503-623- 8391. If you still don’t agree after the review, you can find instructions on the back of the tax statement on how to appeal to the local Board of Property Tax Appeals. The Itemizer-Observer Dallas Aquatic Center puts on Halloween show for youngsters on Saturday By Emily Mentzer DALLAS — “Thar be pi- rates” in the Dallas Aquatic Center on Saturday — and mercreatures and head hunters and other ghouls and goblins. Witches surround the “cauldron” while children dive for coins used later to pay the boatman. The event is good, scary fun, and completely safe, said Tom Snyder, organizer of the annual Halloween event at the aquatic center. With lifeguards as mon- sters and a complete staff of lifeguards on duty observing, the scariest thing is how much fun everyone will have. “Have you ever been to the Pirates of the Caribbean (at Disneyland)? Have you ever wanted to get out and run around with the pirates and stuff? So did I,” Snyder said. The event is geared to- ward children in elemen- tary school and those in sixth grade. The goal is to find Capt. Jack Lantern’s treasure chest. But before that, children are taken on a kayak with a pirate guide through a tun- nel filled with water crea- tures before negotiating a balance beam plank. “We have creatures in the water that come out, pas- sages that you have to be pulled through or swim By Jolene Guzman The Itemizer-Observer DALLAS AQUATIC CENTER/ for Itemizer-Observer Scary aquatic creatures await unsuspecting visitors during the Dallas Aquatic Cen- ter’s annual ‘Monster Splash.’ The Halloween-themed event take place on Saturday. through,” Snyder said. “It’s very safe.” Volunteers and lifeguards make up the monsters, who tone it down a bit for the first half hour of the show for those in preschool before the real frights come out. “All my characters and cast come in and put on their fangs,” Snyder said. “That’s the real PG version.” At the end, children meet Capt. Jack Lantern, who is Search for treasure What: Dallas Aquatic Center’s annual Halloween swim event. When: Saturday, 6:30 to 7 p.m. for the rated G, “not so scary” performance; 7:30 to 9 p.m. for the rated PG, “soo scary” performance. Where: Dallas Aquatic Center, 1005 SE LaCreole Drive, Dallas. Admission: $5 for the irst run through, with addi- tional cost if kids want to go again. Of note: Wear swim gear as children will be expect- ed to swim, paddle, swing and slide past creatures and obstacles in search of Capt. Jack Lantern and his treas- ure. For more information: 503-623-9715. Did you know? • Measure 5, a Consti- tutional amendment approved by Oregon voters in 1990, is still in efect. It created a per- manent limitation on property taxes of $10 per $1,000 of real mar- ket value for general government services and $5 per $1,000 of real market value for e d u c a t i o n s e r v i ce s. Measure 5 reductions amounted to a $606,386 loss in proper- ty tax revenues for the tax districts this year, primarily for education services. • Property taxes can grow by more than 3 percent per year if the real market value (RMV) on a property is higher than what is called the property’s maximum as- sessed value (MAV). En- acted after Oregon vot- ers passed Measure 50, the MAV on a property was initially calculated in 1997 using the 1995 RMV (the amount the county assessor’s oice believes a proper ty would sell for if put on the market on Jan. 1). That value is limited by statute to grow at no more than 3 percent an- nually. But the assessed value, what property taxes are based on, can b e MAV o r R M V, whichever is lower. In many cases, RMV can fall below MAV especially during a recession. In that case, taxes are based on RMV, which can grow — or fall — by more than 3 percent in a year. Former Tyco site has sold Sunday, Oct. 25, 2015 7:00 to 9:00 pm Free for high school students and their parents 1175 SE Howe St., Dallas • 503-623-2331 “like Santa Claus turned pi- rate,” Snyder said. “The kids go through all the scary stuff, so it’s nice to end with a nice person,” he said. “My captain will ask them a question — it’s a real easy question — and the kid gets to take a coin out of his treasure chest. They can use that coin to exchange for candy at the front desk.” In the aquatic center’s party room, the swim club will have a café set up in the style of the Blue Bayou restaurant at Disneyland. “Parents can sit down and eat and watch what their kids are doing at the same time,” Snyder said. Games and food will be available in the party room. Participants may buy tickets to play the games and eat scary treats such as mummy wraps or spaghetti and eyeballs. DALLAS — The long-va- cant former Tyco building in Dallas has a new owner. Dallas City Manager Ron Foggin announced the clos- ing of the sale to American Gas & Technology at the Dal- las City Council meeting Monday night. He said the sale was final on Oct. 2, but the company isn’t in production at the facil- ity off Monmouth Cutoff Road yet. He said the business spe- cializes in compressed natu- ral gas and has patents in the technology. “They will start sooner rather than later and they will be employing people,” Foggin said. The former Tyco site will be the company’s first pro- duction facility. Foggin said the business wanted to set up shop in Oregon. “They are pretty serious,” Foggin said. “They looked at several sites in Oregon.” The company’s website says it is developing technology that could create liquified nat- ural gas fueling stations. “Natural gas not only saves money, but also reduces greenhouse gases and U.S. dependence on foreign oil,” it said.
