Commissioners set flood zone assessment

Wahkiakum County officials on Tuesday set the amount and time limit for tax assessments for property in the county's flood control zone districts.

The prosecuting attorney's office will develop a resolution to establish the rates formally, and the board will action it at a future meeting.

Assessor Bill Coons said to raise the targeted $81,000 needed to cover permitting expenses for current beach nourishment work projects, the county will need to assess a rates per acre and per building improvement value.

The average assessment will be $717, Coons said. The highest will be $4,568; the median will be $525, and the lowest will be $17.

Coons added that the assessments are based on acerage within the district and on improvements' value because state law requires those assessments rather than a frontage foot value.

Commissioners felt those assessments are too high to implement in one year.

After discussion they agreed to assess it over a five year period.

"This would hold us over the 10 years (of the permit)," Cothren said

"We would recoup the $81,000 in five years and it could be adjusted then," Brady said.

In the past, the county has used money from its Flood Control Fund for permitting of beach nourishment projects, but, as Cothren commented, that fund is being depleted and there are other projects in the county that need funding. The assessment will help ease that situation.

The assessment would start to be collected in 2017