Reactions to AVI have been varied and heated, with residents nonplussed at assessments that saw Pat's Steaks get a 16% reduction while smacking web designers P'unk Ave with a 148% increase. The city has gone so far as to schedule workshops to demystify the ordeal for Philadelphians before the deadline to appeal OPA assessments on March 31, issuing a video tutorial (below). Dave Davies of NewsWorks is of the opinion that as far as cities of comparable age and size go, we aren't all that bad. "The city clearly has heavy wage and business taxes that undermine its competitiveness. What it doesn't have is a relatively high property tax burden."
This conclusion explains much of the bitterness that's risen to the surface, with increasing criticism directed at the city for its soft stance on tax deadbeats. Today's NewsWorks article by Patrick Kerkstra and PlanPhilly, which kicks off the Inquirer's Delinquency series, pins the consequences of delinquency on the overall tax base at approximately $9.5 billion, almost 10 percent of the city's $98.5 billion in taxable real estate. This glaring iniquity becomes that much worse when considering the number of who are facing protracted issues over their property tax assessments.
It's doubtful that the city's offers to assuage complications will put people at ease. Unless some concerted action is taken with regards to tax delinquents and the harm they've done to the city, people are likely to stay mad.
· How to appeal OPA [YouTube]
· Local lawyers smell a profit in AVI [The Naked City]
· I'm Mad As Hell And Want to Appeal My OPA Assessment. What Do I Do? [Philadelinquency]
· Property Tax Changes [Axis Philly]
· Philadelphia tax burden high, but not the worst [NewsWorks]
—Alyssa Greenberg