An Illinois Ceritified Residential Appraiser since 2004, Zielinski set a goal of "zero appeals by the end of my second term," in his announcement. He also promised to push for State legislation requiring Boards of Review to provide specific grounds if they reject a property owners’ appeal and awarding legal fees if they win in court.
Zielinski said he'd give “10 percent of my gross salary directly to the Grafton Food Pantry,” if he's elected Grafton Assessor. “Government service is about service, not building wealth," said Zielinski.
In the pic: Alan Zielinski
27 comments:
Sounds good to me the current assesor is really good at tap dancing but thats about it!
If you do get elected get rid of that little round deputy her needs to go too!
Thank you for your support!
My campaign's focus is on qualifications, performance and implementing my vision for a better Grafton Township.
I will make the promise that all employees will be the most highly-qualified available and share my commitment to courtesy and respect for all taxpayers as well as achieving the highest possible office efficiency.
The current Assessor, Mr. Ottley, has been doing a great job for years. He is one of the most aggressive assessors around when reducing assessments during this economy.
That is why Grafton Township was the only township in McHenry County to receive a positive multiplier last year from the County Assessor.
Mr. Ottley has, and will continue to support Grafton residents as our assessor.
Mr Zielinski does appear to have have a solid background for appraisals, but he has no experience with mass assessments, and I have seen nothing to say he has done any commercial assessing. You can not "appraise" 21,000 properties a year using his appraiser techniques, you could not afford to budget the man power needed to do that many properties individually. You will also NEVER have zero appeals. If you lower assessments to make us tax payers happy, the county adds a multiplier. Either way, some people will file an appeal to look for a further reduction of taxes.
To say that you will have no appeals... shows Mr. Zielinski does not fully understand the actual job of the assessor.
I would feel better, if he worked as a Deputy Assessor somewhere first, and really understood what job he is trying to win.
Mr. Ottley wasn't at my appeal he left it to his deputy who sided with the appeal board. I would expect the guy I elected to be present at my appeal but Ottley choose to leave it to his chubby little minion.
This year the county made me an assesment offer NOT OTTLEY! Ottley should work a little harder at
that 60K job of his and not give so much authority to his deputy.
Was your appeal hearing the only one going on at the moment? Did you know the county often has multiple hearings at the same time in different rooms? Was Ottley in one of those? Did you know his deputies are state certified and are basically qualified to be assessors themselves? Stop in and speak with them sometime, you may learn a few things as they are quite helpful. They basically won my appeal for me!
If Mr. Ottleys Deputy was not in agreement with your value, perhaps you were requesting a value that was simply too low, and unrealistic.
I have found the Grafton Assessors Office more than helpful. They helped hundreds of people file appeals last year when the county added over 5% to all of Grafton Township.
And its interesting that you say you are negotiating with the county, since Grafton Township doesn't even have 2012 assessments posted yet.
Get rid of Ottley and the rest of the Grafton bunch!!!! We need to clean house.
Grafton residents have had their fill of acrimony so my comments' intent is education, not retaliation.
The residents are also tired of biased, partial truths so my clarifications have clearly-cited sources.
How is "great" defined?
Certainly not by the assessor's 2012-2013 approved budget of $576,000!
Source: Grafton Township Special Board Meeting Minutes, April 23, 2012.
"Aggressive" is never a compliment to any appraiser or assessor.
"Accurate," yes. "Credible," yes. "Aggressive," never.
The Illinois Department of Revenue's May 29, 2009 letter to the assessor admonishing him to adhere to state statutes is stark evidence why.
That letter's closing paragraph was the Department's polite way of saying "Please understand and apply the theory you took an oath to uphold." (35 ILCS 200/4-30)
Page 3 of the McHenry County Assessor 2011 Annual Report shows all townships' factors were positive so my assumption is you meant "greater than one."
Equalization factors greater than one are never "positive" for taxpayers.
To the contrary, the 1.0531 equalization factor sadly resulted in 5.31% higher property valuations for all Grafton taxpayers.
Adding insult to injury, Grafton was the only township that received a factor greater than one.
Substantial evidence shows the current assessor is not representing taxpayers at the level of professionalism they deserve.
The following data were taken from the McHenry County Assessor 2011 Annual Report.
Page 18: Certificates of Error.
Grafton had the third largest number of McHenry's 17 townships: 15% of the total (almost 3 times what would be expected by probability).
Page 19: Number of complaints filed with the Board of Review.
Grafton had the second largest number: 20% of the total (more than 3 times what would be expected by probability).
Page 20: Board of Review hearings.
Grafton had the second most hearings: 47% of the total (8 times what would be expected by probability).
Sadly, Grafton led all townships with the number of parcels heard: 43% of the total (more than 7 times what would be expected by probability).
My experience with mass assessments is more than adequate and includes vacant land, residential, commercial and industrial parcels.
It was earned in the trenches winning five to six-figure assessment reductions for taxpayers, sometimes as an expert witness.
For instance, I just settled a 2012 case with a Lake County township on a multi-million dollar assessed industrial parcel.
That assessor (also an appraiser) and I reached consensus thereby avoiding an appeal.
It's a splendid example of how appeals can be avoided when comparably-educated people speak honestly about hard data.
A minuscule number of other types of parcels exist but residential parcels are the heart of Grafton Township.
Page 4 of the McHenry County Assessor 2011 Annual Report vividly shows the monumental emphasis of Grafton's residential dominance.
Total parcels: 20,825.
Percentage of Grafton's parcels that are residential: 96%.
Percentage of Grafton's Equalized Assessed Value (EAV) that's residential: 93%.
Zero appeals is a realistic and attainable goal if property owners believe they are being treated fairly.
With that mindset, there's no motivation to appeal.
Innovative, far-reaching ideas like zero appeals and a Taxpayer Bill of Rights are often believed to be unattainable just as putting a man on the Moon within a decade or landing a vehicle on Mars were once thought to be absurd concepts.
Taxpayers have my word I will personally attend every appeal hearing. It's the assessor's job and matters at that level demand the office's highest attention.
I welcome the opportunity to present my case in depth via an open forum such as a debate.
"Brevity is the soul of wit"--Polonius in Hamlet.--ed.
You want to clean house? Start at the Highway Department with Highway Commisioner Jack Freund and his DAUGHTER. Those two created a position so she could have a cushy Grafton paid-for job. They are very good at leaning on signs and shooting the breeze!
Forget harrassing Jack and his staff. Both go the extra mile for the township. Must be Moore or her cronies trying to point fingers again just for the fun of it. Moore had no problem with the road commissioner until she got into office and wanted control of everything and everyone.
Isn't there some kind of background connection between the Moore's and Zielinski?
Funny how you deflect from DAUGHTER to staff!
Isn't the daughter a Moore also?
My campaign is an individual effort to help the taxpayers of Grafton Township.
I requested endorsements from all three Supervisor candidates and have not heard from any.
There is no relationship between my campaign and Ms. Moore or any other candidate for any office.
If you have proof to the contrary, please provide it.
Is he an appraiser or assessor?
According to his website, he is also an engineer?
Assessor? Yes.
Certified Illinois Assessment Officer
Appraiser? Yes.
Illinois and Wisconsin Certified Residential Real Estate Appraiser
Engineer? Yes.
B.S. Chemical Engineering, Purdue University
MBA? Yes.
MBA, Michigan State University
You are not an assessor. You just took a few classes that allow you to run for the office.
If you are/were an assessor, can you please tell us what township or county you worked for, and when?
Again, my comment's intent is education, not retaliation.
Dictionary.com
as·ses·sor [uh-ses-er] noun
1. a person who makes assessments, especially for purposes of taxation.
Appraisers are assessors when they perform appraisals for ad valorem purposes.
That's why most Boards of Review state in their rules that, "absent an arms length sale, the best evidence of fair cash value is a USPAP-compliant appraisal."
McHenry County's is Rule III(C)(3).
However, assessors are NEVER appraisers.
That's not an opinion, it's the law.
225 ILCS 458/1-10: "Appraiser" means a person who performs real estate or real property appraisals.
The law goes on to state that USPAP-compliance is mandatory.
225 ILCS 458/5-5(a) limits appraisals solely to individuals who are certified by the state.
My Illinois certification number is 556.003176. My Wisconsin certification number is 1308-009.
225 ILCS 458/5-5(e) limits assessors to valuations ONLY consistent with their duties under the Illinois Property Tax Code.
That's why an assessor's valuation can't be used for other purposes, e.g., mortgages, estates, relocations, etc.
Based on numerous years performing ad valorem appraisals, plus my review of evidence submitted by assessors in McHenry, Lake, DuPage and Cook counties, I am definitely an assessor.
The Illinois Department of Revenue agrees and has provided their Pre-Election Certification approval.
So...to trim through the fat, the answer to the question is...never worked at a township? Ever dealt with Linda Moore? If not, you are trying to bite off more than you can chew.
Don't know about assessor or appraiser, but you sir are definetly a POLITICIAN!
He sure sounds like LINDA!
Deflect - ignore the question - side step - tap dance!
Review of evidence submitted by assessors? If you file an appeal...they HAVE to review it!
In that case... Every person in McHenry county is an ASSESSOR TOO!
Pre-Election Certification does not make you an Assessor. Being elected by the voters makes you an Assessor.
Just because you can't assimilate my answer doesn't mean your point was "ignored."
Quoting state statute is hardly "deflecting," "side-stepping" or "dancing."
To the contrary, it's being specific and relying on hard data as any good assessor should.
I trust most people recognize that every appraiser is an assessor as opposed to the elected position of Assessor which is a capital “A.”
If you would like to further discuss/debate the differentiation, please contact me directly. Thank you!
No need to discuss it Captain Capital "A"!
Whole lot of interesting statute just to say you have no "A"ssessor experience.
I can "A"-ssimilate just fine.
Bottom line - you have never worked in an "A"ssessors office, right?
My goals are to listen, learn, educate and serve, not waste time jousting; the township has squandered too many resources on that path.
Appraisal is a highest form of valuation; everyone agrees on that.
That's why it's federally- and state-regulated, requires much more education as well as documented experience and is widely accepted across professional lines.
Assessment is limited to properly (and hopefully fairly) implementing the property tax code.
The vast differences in appraiser vs. assessor education and experience are presented on my web site: www.Al-fot-Assessor.com
My record at the Board of Review level indicates my comprehension of assessment is more than adequate (or the Boards wouldn't have ruled in my clients' favor as frequently as they did and do).
If your point is I've never worked in an assessor's office, you are correct: score one for you.
However, that's like saying a person isn't a doctor because they've never worked in a clinic (even though they have advanced degrees polished by several years experience treating battlefield trauma and saving lives).
My apology for the typo above.
The correct URL of the web site is:
www.Al-for-Assessor.com
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