Property Tax Issue
Excessive increases to the Land and Structures Assessment
Property owners in Trail Creek, Coolspring Township, have expressed significant concerns regarding the recent "Green Sheet" (Notice of Assessment of Land and Structures/Improvements dated April 30, 2025). Many residents have observed substantial increases in their assessed property values, specifically a 63.6% rise in land assessments, a 6.21% increase in structure assessments, and an overall total assessment increase of 13.5%.
This situation is particularly troubling for the predominantly retired population in Trail Creek, many of whom rely on fixed incomes. They anticipate that these increased assessments will have a considerable negative impact on their financial well-being and overall quality of life.
Further compounding these concerns is the discovery that property assessments in neighboring Michigan Township have reportedly remained flat, with no discernible changes between previous and new assessments. A canvass of approximately 316 residences within Trail Creek, Coolspring Township, revealed that the reported assessment increases are consistent across the community. The disparity in assessment changes between Trail Creek's Coolspring and Michigan Township, coupled with the significant financial implications for a large segment of the Trail Creek population, highlights a need for further examination and clarification regarding the methodology and fairness of these recent property valuations.
On June 13, 2025, at 4:00 PM, a public meeting (AKA the "DAV Debacle") was held at the Disabled American Veterans (DAV) hall in Michigan City, Indiana, to address citizen concerns regarding property assessments. The meeting was attended by over 100 concerned residents. Representing the Township Assessors were Stacy Sweitzer from Coolspring Township (representing Michael R. Shultz) and Brent Banic, Michigan Township Assessor. LaPorte County Commissioner Joe Haney was also present. The meeting lasted over an hour and included numerous questions and expressions of frustration from some attendees. The consensus interpretation from the discussion was that Township Assessors operate within assessment parameters — a low and high range — established by LaPorte County via state legislators. This suggests that assessors are mandated to assess properties within these defined parameters. Subsequently, these assessments are forwarded to the Auditors, who then calculate the new tax rates. Therefore, any adjustments to tax rates would primarily necessitate action from the Indiana Legislature, implying that the discretion of the Township Assessors in this regard is limited.
Following a public forum where attendees expressed dissatisfaction with the clarity of responses provided, two residents of Trail Creek, one from Coolspring Township the other from Michigan Township visited the LaPorte County Auditor's office. Their objective was to investigate a suspected disproportionate property tax burden between Trail Creek Coolspring Township and Michigan Township. They requested a data inquiry from the Auditor's department to compare the average property tax paid in each township. Our proposed method involved aggregating the total property taxes for each township and dividing by the number of properties, a seemingly straightforward approach for a comparative analysis. During our visit, the elected LaPorte County Auditor expressed reservations regarding our request. Consequently, an impromptu meeting was convened with the Auditor and the Chief Deputy Assessor. Both officials contended that numerous variables would preclude such averages from yielding meaningful insights. While acknowledging the complexity of property tax calculations, it was our belief that with over 300 properties in each township, the impact of individual variables would be mitigated through statistical aggregation. Despite our efforts, it became apparent at that time that our pursuit of a resolution to the perceived tax imbalance would be challenging.
At this point in time we concluded that our best approach would be a massive email campaign to contact our Legislators and express our concerns while also pursuing a face-to-face meeting, with a secondary approach being a radio and television effort to reach and involve the local populace.
