Lackwanna County Reassessment

Division III basketball teams aren’t supposed to beat Division I opponents. The University of Scranton women’s team didn’t believe that Sunday, even though ESPN gave the Royals a .1% chance of beating the University of Pittsburgh.

Lackawanna County went to court Friday to delay by a year the implementation of new property values developed during reassessment the last three years, but county President Judge James Gibbons quickly denied the request in a one-sentence order without further comment.

Attorney Marielle Macher, whose clients forced Lackawanna County to reassess its more than 102,600 properties, says no to county request to delay implementing new values a year. The values are supposed to go into effect Jan. 1.

In a letter to a lawyer who sued the county to force reassessment, a Lackawanna County lawyer argues notices of new values sent to taxpayers didn't contain the current values for comparison as required by state law.

Lackawanna County special commissioner election candidates Michael Cappellini, Chet Merli and Thom Welby debated Thursday night at the University of Scranton — mostly politely.

Underlying tension between Lackawanna County commissioners Chris Chermak and Bill Gaughan broke into the open Thursday at a public commissioners meeting.

Five boards of assessment appeals began hearing Monday the appeals of new values on about 4,200 properties in Lackawanna County as the next phase of reassessment kicked in.

The Community Justice Project, which forced property reassessments in Lackawanna, Schuylkill and Allegheny counties, sued Pennsylvania in the state's Commonwealth Court to get state officials to set standards that include requiring regular reassessments.

More than 102,000 homes, businesses, farms and other real-estate in Lackawanna County have new values developed by the county's first reassessment in more than 50 years.

Taxpayers say Schuylkill County's notice of new property values includes a future tax estimate, but Lackawanna's doesn't. Lackawanna's assessment director says county fears estimates will turn out wrong, angering taxpayers.