Letters

On February 18, after conducting just one public hearing — the minimum required by New York State law — Bill Manger passed a property tax cut that will exclusively benefit some of the most expensive homes in Southampton Village [“Southampton Village Board Adopts Historic Home Rehabilitation Tax Exemption, 4-1,” 27east.com, February 26].

Here’s how his plan works: The only way a property’s assessed value increases in Southampton Village is through new construction or renovation. When that happens, the property’s share of the overall tax levy it must pay increases.

But under Manger’s new law, homes in the historic district — including the estate section, parts of Meadow Lane and South Main Street — will be exempt from assessment increases for five years if their renovations meet certain criteria. For another four years, their increase will be lower than it otherwise would have been.

This shifts the tax burden onto other homeowners, particularly year-round residents. Since these high-value properties will not contribute their fair share to the increase in taxable assessed valuation, the remainder of the village will make up the difference.

Manger falsely claims that this will not increase residents’ taxes — but here’s an example why that’s wrong.

In 2022, when I passed a budget that froze the property tax rate at zero percent, the overall tax levy still increased by $323,482 (1.27 percent) due to new construction and renovations, which expanded the taxable assessed value of the village by 1.27 percent. As a result, homeowners who did not renovate saw no tax increase.

To clarify further, under this new law, properties outside the district still will contribute to the expansion of the tax base, but qualifying renovations of properties in the district will not. For five years, their taxable assessed value will not increase, and for the next five, it will grow at a reduced rate.

Manger also misleadingly referred to this as a tax “deferment.” This is simply incorrect. A deferment means a payment is postponed until a later date. However, according to The Southampton Press, the law’s text explicitly uses the terms “exempt” or “exemption” more than a dozen times, meaning these homeowners will never owe taxes on a portion of their assessed value for years.

Residents should ask: With important issues facing the village, such as deteriorating traffic safety, polluted water, overdevelopment and vacant storefronts, why is Manger prioritizing a potential tax break for estate section properties, such as a mansion that sold for $70 million on Ox Pasture Road in 2022?

The answer is twofold. First, he is rewarding his donors, many of whom live in this district. Second, he is facing strong opposition to his plan to expand the historic district, and is using this tax break as a bargaining chip to win over residents who have already rejected his proposal.

Jesse Warren

Southampton Village

Warren is a former mayor of Southampton Village — Ed.