Yesterday, NY Times architecture critic, Nicolai Ouroussoff, wondered out-loud if the luxury residential tower has taken the place of the civic building as the great urban landmark of the late 20th/early 21st century’s “Guilded Age”.  (For a nice sample of NYC’s luxury towers click here)

If so, Atlanta’s got plenty of new landmarks whether they want them or not. Though they are becoming a more dominating presence along our skyline, it seems that these works of modern architecture are lacking the residents to pay the bills. Atlanta condo sales are down an astonishing 12% since last year.

Yet many developers continue to build. Some have no choice, others may need to reevaluate.

(Picture of 12th & Midtown courtesy of MyUrbanCity)

OK, pardon me if I just don’t get it.

I WAS admittedly born and raised in a state neighboring “Taxachusetts” and often get unholy pleasure when I pay my city and county taxes. So maybe its just me and my sick liberal fetishes, but this initiative to cap property tax assessments in the state legislature doesn’t even seem worthy of print in the AJC.

Why are GA state legislators even beginning to opine and evaluate the accuracy of property assessments (and by extension property values) in this insanely topsy-turvy real estate market? Yes, soaring real estate prices these past 5 years have allowed local governments to announce tax cuts while assessments and property values have risen. But when Decatur cut the millage rate this past year, I don’t recall ANYONE trying to pass it off as this wonderful favor they passed along to residents. It was just calmly explained that rising property values allowed the city to reduce the rate a tad. Great!

If there is a problem with over-assessments in the state, perhaps we should, at a minimum, wait until the real estate market calms down before throwing around terms like “back-door tax hikes” and instituting caps of 2% for residential and 3% for commercial that didn’t work 20 years ago and won’t work today. Because what do you do in a city like Decatur, where houses in my neighborhood are still going off the market in 1-2 months? What if property values rise 5% this year (he said hopefully), yet the assessment can only go up 2%? How then does the assessment accurately represent 40% of the property’s value?

If my property value increases and I enjoy the benefit when I turn around a sell it for a mint, the city is absolutely in the right to get an equal share of that increase. How the heck else are we going to continue to pay for all the great events and services that we enjoy in our little haven?

If there is a problem with over-inflating property assessments in some more shady locales, then its those local residents that should get out in the streets and demand reform. Providing a blanket, statewide cap can’t work in an arena so local as real estate prices.

Give ‘em hell Mayor Floyd. The next time I attach a stamp with a little American flag to my Decatur tax bill, it’ll represent more than just 41 cents; it will be a symbol that I for one do not take my city services for granted.

h/t: InDecatur