Commenting on “County Assessor fails to tax former PAM building”, a contributor suggested:
“No wonder the city has cash flow problems. The county assessment office should check on all the privately owned buildings that are leased to some form of government. The assessors will find that taxes are paid on the full assessed value of said properties. The federal government leases many of its building rather than owning them outright. This keeps the properties on the tax rolls.”
The Watchdog knows firsthand that top executives of UNCB were aware that the building would be placed on the tax roll if they foreclosed, since he discussed the consequences with the bank officers when he was an advisor to the Pennsylvania Academy of Music.
It is hard to believe that the Assessment Office would not be aware that a privately own property leased to the government is not exempt from taxes. This is a frequent occurrence, as suggested above by the contributor.
Was someone looking the other way? If so, why?
