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Joyce Clark Unfiltered

For "the rest of the story"

May 13

17

One story or two story?

Posted by Joyce Clark on May 17, 2013
Posted in Glendale elected officials • Musings over a cup of early morning tea  | Tagged With: , , , , | No Comments yet, please leave one

house 1Recently I received a question about Glendale Councilmember Alvarez’ home. It came from a person surfing the Internet who, out of curiosity, looked up various Councilmembers’ home valuations. I was asked whether I knew that Councilmember Alvarez’ home is listed by the Maricopa County Assessor as being one story in height. Like anyone else, the few times I have visited the Assessor’s site it has been to check the valuation of my property. Who would know an answer to a question like that? Not I. I was intrigued by the question and decided to do some follow up via the trusty Internet.

house 2In the past I have been to Alvarez’ home and it is most definitely a two story home. The County Assessor has it valued as a one story. It could be a very simple clerical error by the Assessor’s office and someone simply overlooked or forgot to check a box indicating the home as two stories. In bureaucracy that happens all the time.

building permitHowever, the situation does raise some questions. The home was originally built in 1972 as one story with the Alvarezes as the original and only owners. The second story was added sometime in the past 40 years. Were Glendale building permits requested and issued? Were inspections were made and passed by the City of Glendale? There should be Glendale records that show that permits were issued and major inspections for electrical and plumbing were passed.

approveIn calling the Assessor’s Office I learned that when permits are pulled at the city level for a home improvement such as adding a second story the city passes that information to the County Assessor’s office. If this occurred, those improvements would show up on the Assessor’s rolls the following year causing an increase in valuation. Yet apparently this did not happen. Why? As a long-term former city employee and now as a Councilmember I am sure Councilmember Alvarez would have followed city requirements for a major project to the letter.

internetI decided to do some more surfing of my own with some help from my grandchildren. (Grandchildren are far more inventive and skillful in the use of the Internet than I could ever hope to be.) Every home in Alvarez’ subdivision is listed as a one story home. We found a two story home within .08 mile of Alvarez with exactly the same square footage (the difference in SF between the two properties is 1 SF). It is valued at $10,000 more than the Alvarez property. There could be other variables that caused the higher valuation of the neighboring two story property but the fact that it has two stories creating additional living space and added value would a major factor.

The fact is the County Assessor has the Alvarez property listed as a one story home. The fact is that the only other two story home in the area has a higher valuation.  Is the valuation of the Alvarez’ property correct? Are the property taxes that have been paid and are currently being paid too low?

This all could be nothing but at the very least, don’t you think Councilmember Alvarez should be notifying the County Assessor that the information listed is incorrect and her home is two stories, not one?

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May 13

11

Mother’s Day: three caring and compassionate women in my life

Posted by Joyce Clark on May 11, 2013
Posted in Musings over a cup of early morning tea  | Tagged With: | No Comments yet, please leave one

Mother’s Day seems most appropriate as the day to honor these three women all of whom have had a profound effect on me.

My Mom was born in 1913 and died in 2005 at the age of 92 of Alzheimer’s, a cruel disease indeed. My Mom was one of 5 siblings born to Polish immigrant parents. Education and assimilation were goals all were to achieve. My Mom graduated from Pratt Institute as a dietician. Not only was it unheard of in 1933 for girls to go beyond high school but Mom also graduated from Pratt by the time she was 20. She had lots of chutzpah and literally talked her way into a job as the Head Dietician at a hospital. She worked most of her life helping those who were ill and she especially loved the little ones. She was old-school and catered to my Dad’s needs. She raised three children, all of whom turned out reasonably well and none of whom went to jail. She cared about others all of her life. When my Aunt was dying of cancer, Mom was there. When we had our babies and needed a babysitter, Mom was there.

mothers day 1She was at the same time ordinary and extraordinary. She was my Mom and I loved her.

Laura, my sister-in-law, was born in 1930 and was one of 7 siblings. She grew up in the panhandle of Texas, dirt poor. She was the only daughter who escaped that hard life and she, too, graduated from college. She was beautiful and smart but most of all she had a gentlewomanly elegance about her. I never heard her raise her voice to anyone. She, too, was compassionate and caring, especially with strangers. When you met her, she could coax your life story from you and commiserate with you over all of your misfortunes. You left her presence feeling unburdened. Laura’s compassion and caring extended to all creatures, great and small, and to the inanimate plant life surrounding her. She could take a plant cutting and make it root and grow into something beautiful and exotic. Laura died on April 28, 2013 at the hand of that robber of so many good people – cancer. She was my sister-in-law and I loved her.

Dawn is my best friend of many years. She, younger than I, yet age has no bearing on our deep friendship. She, too, like the others of importance in my life is smart and well educated. We are the ying and yang of friendships. She being tall, willowy and blond while I am short and round. Politically we have been miles apart although as I grow older I find myself gravitating toward her point of view more and more often. She, too, is caring and compassionate beyond measure. I often find myself marveling at the extraordinary kindnesses she has shown to others. Ruefully she extends herself in ways I would not have thought of doing. Unknowingly she has taught me valuable life lessons. She, like my Mom and Laura, loves all growing things, from babies to animals to plants. She draws others to her easily and her heart is big for those lucky enough to enter it. She is my best friend and I love her.

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