Avon Township assessor says work continues despite closed office
The office closed Sept. 19 and there is no staff, but Avon Township Assessor Christopher Ditton says he is fulfilling his elected duties and services are being provided.
"People aren't being denied any service. Absolutely not," Ditton said Monday.
"I've been doing exactly what I've done prior, I just haven't been in the physical office," he added.
Ditton said he has been focusing on gathering evidence and fact-checking in advance of defending the assessor's office in property tax appeals to be heard this fall by Lake County Board of Review. He said there are 1,397 appeals in Avon Township.
The unusual situation spotlights a continuing rift between Ditton and township officials, who he says forced his hand by cutting his budget. The township and assessor share space at the Avon Township center on Washington Street in Round Lake Park, with the township as the landlord.
Changing signs on the assessor's office door have been part of the ongoing dispute. Ditton's original sign said the office was closed due to "reckless budget cuts" by the township board. That sign was replaced at the suggestion of the township attorney with one that said the township regretted any inconvenience caused by Ditton's stance to close the office. That move was taken "to make me look bad," Ditton said.
"His door being (closed) makes him look bad," Township Supervisor Lisa Rusch responded Monday. She said three visitors, who came in before noon Monday, were referred to the Chief County Assessment Office in Waukegan.
Ditton said he was working in the office this past Saturday. He posted a new sign that says the office remains available to serve taxpayers "despite forced staff cuts," and included two numbers - an office cellphone and the county assessment office for assistance. That sign remained in place Monday.
The root of the dispute is the 2014-15 budget. Ditton said it called for two full-time and one part-time employee but he needed four full-timers to be on par with other township assessment offices.
"I kind of felt I was being singled out for political reasons," said Ditton, a former running mate of Rusch who filed suit in federal court against Rusch and the township board. The suit is ongoing but a judge this month denied Ditton's motion for an injunction to prevent the township from enacting the budget.
"It's not over. We're moving forward," Ditton said.
Meanwhile, he said he had enough money in the budget to keep the full staff until early fall to ensure the assessments were done.
"The money was exhausted more quickly than if I had two people," he said. "The employees have known for some time this was going to happen." he added. Rusch said the township sent Ditton memos regarding the situation and notified him there wouldn't be enough funds as of Sept. 19.
"My focus right now is to get as many appeals answered as I can," Ditton said. "I feel I need to devote 100 percent of my assessing time to appeals," he added.
Ditton's lawyer, Edward Mullen, said about $63 million in assessed property value has been challenged. If Ditton can't present evidence defending those values, property taxes will "likely be higher" for the majority of Avon Township property owners who have not challenged the assessments and entities such as school and park district may not receive their full tax levies, forcing budget cuts, he added.