INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — In an unusual move, Indian River County Commissioner Wesley Davis switched political hats during the County Commission meeting, which Commissioner Bob Solari characterized as a “political circus.”
Davis slipped down from the dais when public comment came up on the agenda and spoke from the podium as a private citizen who is also running for County Property Appraiser, he said.
Davis chided current Property Appraiser David Nolte for not doing his job because he’d done nothing to address decreased property values since 2012, when the All Aboard Florida project was announced.
The company proposes to bring 32 passenger trains a day through the area traveling over 100 miles an hour with stops only in bigger-market cities. Freight train traffic will also be increased. Davis said train horns will be nearly constant, the noise compounded by blocked vehicles.
If elected, Davis said, “I’ll be more proactive,” declaring the 1,000 feet on either side of the tracks as an “AAF real estate disaster zone.”
Martin County Property Appraiser Laurel Kelly ordered a study on AAF’s effect on property values two years ago, Davis said, and adjusted them accordingly. He said the average loss of value for properties within 400 feet was nearly $17,000 post-AAF announcement and was “immediate.”
For homes between 400 and 1,000 feet from the tracks the average loss was about $10,500, he said.
Davis warned the County may be facing a “tax-revenue shortfall,” and will be caught flat-footed. He estimated a $1 million loss in taxes this year.
He asked the Commission to order a study similar to Martin County’s. He also asked them to clarify if real estate agents are obligated to warn prospective buyers of AAF’s effect on property values. In addition, he said the County GIS department should identify and notify “affected parties” along the 2,000-foot-wide and 22-mile-long strip bordering the tracks in the county.
Nolte was allowed to respond. He said there is no indication that property values have been affected by AAF so far, “and it’s really hard to predict the future,” casting doubt on any study that is predictive and not based on current market value.
He said the Appraiser’s Office must value properties based on real, current day and historic market value, not supposed future value.
Nolte also said he didn’t have the budget to order an outside study and Martin County paid the $60,000 for their study, which did not come from Kelly’s property-appraisal budget.
Next to the podium was Phyllis Frey, representing the Treasure Coast No Trains Coalition.
“There seems to be political theater going on,” Commissioner Solari said, warning Frey not to speak. “I ask you not to speak on AAF.” He shut her down when she continued.
“Anybody want to speak on something other than the political circus we’ve had today?” Solari said.
No others came to the podium and the half-dozen or so Treasure Coast No Trains Coalition members who came to petition their local government left immediately.
