CANFIELD — The Canfield Board of Education has filed complaints with the Mahoning County auditor over two property valuations in the district.

During a special meeting last week, board members voted to file the complaints.

These counterclaims are filed as the reduction in value of these properties will cause a corresponding decrease in the amount of property tax collected by the district. The board argues a sale price in 2022 exceeds the true value of the property for tax year 2023 by both 10% and $535,000.

The first property to be challenged is on Boardman-Canfield Road near the O’Reilly’s Auto Parts store. The Board of Education found the county tax year 2023 value was set at $366,780, but the property sold in 2022 for $911,400, according to Mahoning County tax records. The property is owned by Wetgo Portfolio III, LLC.

The second property is at 1500 Boardman-Canfield Road near the True North station. The records show it has a tax year 2023 value of $353,700. The 2022 records show the property sold for $1,095,000. The owner is listed as Hutton Boardman Canfield OH ST LLC.

Ohio Revised Code Section 5715.19 (A) permits a board of education to file a complaint with the county auditor challenging the determination of the total valuation of a property it does not own within the district.

“Both owners were notified of the challenge, and both are out of state,” said Pattie Prince, school district treasurer. “Both properties are commercial.”

She said if there were no challenge, the properties would remain at the low valuation and over the next six years, the district would lose roughly $85,000 in taxes from the two.

Board members unanimously approved the two challenges. The next step will be to inform the legal counsel of Peters, Kalail, and Markakis Co. L.P.A. of the resolutions that authorize the firm to file the complaints.

The matter, according to Prince, will then go before the Board of Revisions.

Prince said, “The values should be the sale price. I am not sure why these two properties didn’t make the reappraisals.”

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