From the President:
Member Survey
The Board would like to thank each of you who responded to our recent survey on homeless/vagrancy and tourism. We received 222 total responses. The Board is reviewing each of the comments and will be posting all of them on our website.
Here are the results of the two questions asked:
Q1. Do you agree that the City should seek humane solutions to reduce the number of individuals storing belongings and sleeping overnight on sidewalks and in the historic squares?
222 responses.
Yes—90.99% (202)
No----9.01 (20)
Q2. Do you believe the Downtown Neighborhood Association is representing your views on this aspect (Tourism) of living downtown?
207 responses
Yes—81.64% (169)
No----18.36% (38)
Monthly Meeting
The Board appreciates the large turnout at the monthly meeting last Tuesday. The presentation by Board Tourism Chair Marysue McCarthy and DNA Member Nancy Radke was very well researched and informative. For those of you who were unable to attend the meeting you can view the presentation here.
Help with smoke alarms
If your smoke alarm is out of reach, the Savannah Fire Department can help you with changing the batteries. It also will assist with changing out non-working smoke alarms, but you must first purchase the new alarm. Call 912 651- 6756 to make the request. The contact there will collect your information and provide it to the fire department. You will be notified before the firefighters come to your location. These requests are handled when firefighters are available and can occur the same day as your call.
Groundhog Day…sorry I meant HB581 – Property Tax Relief and Reform for Georgians
On February 21, I attended the Chatham County Board of Commissioners meeting where the third and final hearing on HB581 was held. After the hearing the commissioners voted to “do nothing” as it relates to the law. This decision in effect resulted in the county “opting in” to the law. This approach is the opposite of how the city of Savannah has indicated it will proceed. As I wrote in the February 10 newsletter the City’s rationale for “opting out” is to eliminate the requirement for the Board of Assessors to determine your tax bill under both laws. This will require additional costs for software and employees. There are also concerns that by having two different assessments, taxpayers may get confused about the two amounts.
On February 6, the County Board of Assessors gave an excellent presentation and overview of the differences between HB581 and the Stephens Day Homestead Exemption (SD) to the commissioners. You can view this presentation here. (If you are confused by HB581, this presentation is worth the time to watch. It begins 7 minutes into the video.) The software needed to calculate both versions of the exemptions is already available and will be used by the county.
By “opting in” to HB581 the homeowner gets the benefit of this new exemption as well as SD. If the assessor’s office determines that your tax bill in 2025 is lower under SD then you will pay that amount. If in 2026 your tax bill under HB581 is lower, you will pay that amount. The Board of Assessors office will calculate the tax bill under both laws going forward and homeowners will get the lowest tax bill, between the two, as a result.
This Thursday, February 27, the City Council will be holding three additional hearings concerning HB581with the first one beginning at 2 pm. Additional hearings will be held at 4:30 and 6 pm. The hearing location is 2 Laura Ave, Savannah.
David McDonald
PresidentDowntown Neighborhood Association Savannah, GA Inc.