Land Value Increases in Brandy Creek
Residents of the Brandy Creek and
Wallace Fork Road Community have opened the newest chapter in their struggle
for justice against the harms caused by the failed plan to develop Carolina
Crossroads entertainment district and the Roanoke Rapids Theater in their
neighborhood. Residents of the community filed a lawsuit today in Halifax
County Superior Court against the county, the City of Roanoke Rapids, and
Weldon City Schools seeking a refund of illegally inflated property taxes
collected in 2007, 2008 and 2009. After the 2007 property revaluation, their
land values and property taxes went up an average of over 800%, and as high as
1400%, an intense hardship which decimated the community. Read the complaint.
In 2006 the community was annexed
into Roanoke Rapids without notice to the residents as part of the new
entertainment district. Since 2008 the UNC Center for Civil Rights has assisted
the community, first with seeking de-annexation from Roanoke Rapids, and now
with the refund of absurdly high and illegal property taxes. The community was
finally de-annexed by the legislature in 2011.
Property taxes in the community
increased for two separate reasons, first because of the addition of Roanoke
Rapids city taxes, for which the community received minimal services. The
greatest part of the tax increase, however, was due to the illegally inflated property
values from the 2007 valuation. Last November, residents sent letters to the
three local government taxing authorities named in the lawsuit, as each of them
improperly benefited from the illegally inflated taxes. Residents and their counsel also made a presentation to the
Halifax County Board of Commissioners. All three local governments
refused to refund the taxes, leaving residents with no other alternative but to
seek justice through the courts.
In
addition to the UNC Center for Civil Rights, the residents are assisted by
Attorney Bettina Roberts-Flood who practices in Halifax and is representing the
residents pro bono in recognition of the injustice facing the community.
Posted by Peter Hull Gilbert on Fri. August 24, 2012 3:57 PM
Categories: Community Inclusion, Halifax County, Halifax Taxes