The Grand List is official.
And it continues to grow.
Westport town assessor Paul Friia announced yesterday that the net 2023 Grand List of $11,468,456,765 represents an increase of 1.38 percent from the net 2022 Grand List ($11,312,004,303).
The Grand List is the sum of the net assessed value of all taxable property – real estate, motor vehicles and personal property.
Motor vehicles and personal property are valued annually. Real estate is updated based on the market values determined at the town’s last revaluation date (October 1, 2020).
Homes like this one on Beachside Avenue help boost the Grand List.
This year’s Grand List showed increases in 2 of the 3 categories.
The 1.5 percent increase in real estate assessment results from continued residential and commercial new construction, plus renovation activity that occurred within the last assessment year, Friia says.
Construction continues on the 31 condominiums at “The Mill” (41 Richmondville Avenue) and the 12 condos at 60 Wilton Road.
In addition, the Belta Farm 9-lot subdivision, and the construction of nearly 60 new homes contributed to increased in the 2023 real estate Grand List.
The Mill on Richmondville Avenue will add 31 condos to next year’s Grand List.
Personal property increased approximately 5 percent, suggesting “a continued reinvestment in local new and existing businesses to include equipment and leasehold improvements,” Friia says.
The one category that decreased was motor vehicles (5.1 percent). Friia expected that, due to “the reduction in motor vehicle values post-COVID.”
The current 2023 Grand List totals are:
| Assessment | 2023 | % of List |
| Real Estate | 10,610,104,816 | 92.52 |
| Motor Vehicle | 461,685,370 | 4.03 |
| Personal Property | 396,666,579 | 3.45 |
| TOTAL | 11,468,456,765 | 100% |
The Grand List will be used for fiscal year 2024-2025 town budget calculations. NOTE: The figures above are subject to change, based on Board of Assessment Appeal hearings in March, and any corrections or pending lawsuits.
The Top 10 Westport taxpayers are:
Connecticut Light & Power Inc Pers. Property 142,022,480
60 Nyala Farms Road LLC Real Estate 83,335,700
Bedford Square Assoc LLC Real Estate 51,520,000
Aquarion Real/Pers. Prop. 38,700,440
Equity One Westport Vill. Center Real Estate 34,383,600
Bridgewater Associates LP Pers. Property 27,272,840
Byelas LLC Real Estate 24,856,700
Bankside House Westport LLC Real Estate 24,569,000
LCB Westport LLC Real Estate 24,532,860
Southern Connecticut Gas Co Pers. Property 22,328,270
Westport’s second-highest taxpayer: the office building at Nyala Farm, off the Sherwood Island Connector. Not the deer. (Photo/Nico Eisenberger)
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“The Mill on Richmondville Avenue will add 31 condos to next year’s Grand List.”It’ll also add maybe 62 cars driving on Westport’s already crowded roads that everyone complains about.
Jack, you should start a river taxi service to harness the underused Saugatuck as an alternate route to downtown and upstream to the Planet Fitness (you know, the former Camp Mahackeno): I suggest you name it “Kayak Jack’s” There!!! Problem solved.
Give everybody who owns real property in Westport a bike. No cars allowed. NOW, that would make Westport very special instead of showing off.
Oh aren’t we special. My attorney tells me that most of his clients are two years or more in arrears on their mortgage. Plastic money. Yawn
Now that’s an interesting and awesome fact, if true…Dan Woog, got any clue as to the veracity of that shocker?
It’s not that I question Scooter’s tale, just curious if Dan’s got an ear to the ground concerning penury in town.
Don’t know – but maybe it’s an attorney specializing in bankruptcies?
Dan:
Seeing your article about the 2023 Grand List and particularly the list of top ten taxpayers prompted a bit of research which in turn led to a question about how “appraised values” are computed in Westport. My wife and I own 111 Post Road West (a.k.a. 9 Burr Road). This is a 3,600 square foot office building located across the street from King Highway School. The property consists of 0.24 acres of land. According to the Westport Tax Assessor’s field card (all figures quoted on all properties were obtained from this source) this 0.24 acres of land has an “appraised value” of $480,200 which translates into a $2,000,833 per acre “appraised value”. Looking through other property in the general vicinity suggests that this “appraised value” for 9 Burr Road is appropriate.
However, less than one mile from 9 Burr Road there is an 81.4 acre land parcel which the same Westport Tax Assessor says has an “appraised value” of $5,810,400 which translates into a $71,381 per acre “appraised value”! This parcel is known as Birchwood Country Club!
In addition, across town there is another 39 acre parcel of land which the Westport Tax Assessor says has an “appraised value” of $4,439,000 which translates into a $113,821 per acre “appraised value”! This parcel is known as the Fairfield County Hunt Club!
Now I grant you reasonable people can differ on estimates such as the fair market value of real estate but suggesting my 0.24 acres of Westport is worth more than 28 times as much as Birchwood’s land and more than 17 times the Hunt Club’s land is a far cry from reasonable.
One more curious set of facts: both the 9 Burr and the Hunt Club land are assessed at 70% of their “appraised value” but for some reason Birchwood’s land assessment is only 30% of its land “appraised value”!
To my knowledge both Birchwood and the Hunt Club are private, members only establishments (we were members of Birchwood for 15 years, ending in about 2013) where membership is not limited to Westport residents, are not 501(c)3 charities and do not qualify for any other public service tax abatements.
Obviously I am missing something here and would appreciate you and/or your readers explaining to me how all this makes sense.
Bob Wickey
I believe it is because it is assessed as open space rather than what it is actually worth. Apparently that is a thing in Connecticut per linked report.
https://www.cga.ct.gov/2013/rpt/2013-R-0273.htm
To your point, it is debatable whether private clubs like these should receive special treatment but someone views it as beneficial. Having said that, I believe farmland and deeded open space are treated differently as well.