ROWE — Voters at Thursday’s Special Town Meeting will be asked to give their blessing for the Selectboard and Board of Assessors to negotiate and enter into PILOT agreements (payment in lieu of taxes) with the two hydroelectric power companies.
The meeting will start at 6 p.m. in the Rowe Elementary School gymnasium.
Bear Swamp Power Co., one of the hydroelectric power companies in question, owns 13 lots in town. Great River Hydro also owns 13 lots. Both companies have appealed their property valuations three to four times dating back to fiscal year 2019, according to Board of Assessors Chair Rick Williams. He said the state’s Appellate Tax Board encourages parties to negotiate settlements to resolve tax disputes instead of resorting to litigation, particularly due to the court systems being backed up following pandemic-related delays.
“These utility companies have property in neighboring towns where they have also disputed their valuations,” Selectboard Chair Chuck Sokol noted. “Similar Town Meeting votes in those towns have already occurred or will occur soon.”
The Special Town Meeting warrant states that, with voter approval, the Selectboard and Board of Assessors would be allowed to negotiate and enter into PILOT agreements with the two companies. Williams elaborated that the involved parties will need to reach an agreement on the properties’ value, and a payment will be determined based on that. The warrant states the PILOT agreements would carry five-year terms.
This Special Town Meeting vote is a formality, Williams noted, as the Board of Assessors only needs voters’ permission to formalize agreements. The assessors have already begun negotiations with the two companies.
“We are working toward an agreement with one company and the other we are still far apart,” he said. “This gives us the option to have a settlement instead of going to a hearing.”
The second article on the warrant, if approved, would allow the Selectboard to take the appropriate measures to obtain easements in the area around the Cyrus Stage Road Bridge construction project.
“This warrant article would allow the Board of Selectmen to enter into agreements with the neighboring landowners, allowing construction crews to move structures related to the bridge or, if required, nearby utility poles, so that repair work can be completed,” Sokol explained. “The planned work won’t involve any substantial moves, but easements are still required.”
The article, which requires a two-thirds majority to pass, does not give the Selectboard a budget to work with, but authorizes the board to “take any and all actions as may be necessary or appropriate.”
To view the full warrant, visit bit.ly/3sMzRZx.
Bella Levavi can be reached at blevavi@recorder.com or 413-930-4579.