HOW COULD THIS HAPPEN?

686. Welcome to the first Blog of 2025. This is how the sausage is made and it’s not pretty or appetizing. THE GREAT SUPERIOR SHOCKING TAX SWINDLE is the biggest story of 2024 in my opinion and I will explain that a little later in the Blog. I tried to find every article I could and create a timeline and try and figure it all out. Let’s go back to the beginning. Here is an article from The Superior Telegram dated April 21,2022. Bon Appetit! 

Superior council prepares for citywide property revaluation Associated Appraisal Consultants received a contract to conduct a review of residential property values.

By Shelley Nelson April 21, 2022 at 9:00 AM

SUPERIOR — The Superior City Council set the stage Tuesday, April 19, to reevaluate property values in the city in 2023.

The council approved waiving bid requirements and a contract with Associated Appraisal Consultants Inc., for $355,000 for revaluation assessment services.

When this article came out in 2022, I told my wife that this was not going to have a happy ending. What happens when a city hires an outside firm to perform property tax assessments? They want to correctly assess the value of your home so it will be taxed appropriately. Which usually means your property tax will go up. 

And as usual, after reading a Shelley Nelson article, I seem to have more questions than answers.

The population of Superior has dropped substantially over the years. About 40% actually. Did the city have to hire outside assessors in the past? Could the city not have hired a few assessors themselves to get this done in-house? They certainly knew that this was going to have to be done long in advance.

690. Does the Mayor or City Council not read the news? What has happened here is not unusual at all. It has happened all across the country over the years. This article makes one thing perfectly clear. The Mayor and City Council are responsible for this. You will read later in the Blog where the Mayor is blaming everyone else for this debacle. No Siree Bob! This is all on you Mayor and the “Brainless Bunch” AKA City Council. It was you and council that voted for this. Nobody else.

December 13, 2022

691. Mayor Jim Paine announces a Superior property tax Decrease

Amanda Eke WDIO News
Updated: December 13, 2022 Published: December 12, 2022 

December 13, 2022

The City of Superior is heading towards some changes in 2023. Mayor Jim Paine announced Friday December 9th, 2022 property taxes will be decreasing. Property owners that have not yet made improvements to their Superior home in 2022 can await an estimated 3% reduction in their property taxes in the 2023 year after accounting for changes in state tax credits.

“We are increasing services and we are decreasing taxes, and that’s because the economy is growing when there are more taxpayers, when there is more value in the property in the City of Superior, then everybody else pays a little less. When the economy was fairly low for decades, that meant everybody had to pay more to get the same or fewer services, “says Paine.

Paine also explains that there is a lot of new construction in the city when you have expansions on people’s houses and in a growing housing market everybody pays a little bit less.

“So in other words, if you had ten people paying in, that’s more money than nine people paying in. And so what we do is we charge as though there were nine and a half and then we get a little bit more revenue,” continues Paine.

Although great property taxes are going down, the individuals that do not own properties would not benefit from tax decreases. Paine states he recognizes this problem.

 “Almost half our community rents and a sizable percent of the population lives even in subsidized housing, and a small amount are homeless. We are going to continue working to provide safe and stable and affordable housing options for everybody in the city,” finishes Paine. 

Soothing words from our illustrious Mayor. One problem, they aren’t all true. When he said:

“that’s because the economy is growing when there are more taxpayers, when there is more value in the property in the City of Superior,”

Not exactly true. The population has decreased under his leadership which started in 2017. Anyway he sure has a strange way with words doesn’t he? He doesn’t mention the economy of Superior is stagnant at best. He doesn’t mention Superior is one of the highest taxed cities in the country. He doesn’t mention how the city could cut costs and expenses to bring these inflated property taxes down significantly which in my opinion could easily be done. So a 3% drop in taxes doesn’t excite me when I believe taxes in Superior are about 30-50% too high. 



Since this was for your 2023 taxes, I wonder if this was used as a distraction for what was about to happen for your 2024 taxes? One can only wonder.

Superior officials plan to reassess property values Associated Appraiser Consultants expects to begin residential exterior inspections after Labor Day for revaluation.

By Shelley Nelson

August 24, 2023

SUPERIOR — The city is gearing up to reassess the value of properties to bring assessed values in line with what the house would sell for in Superior.

Associated Appraisal Consultants will likely start conducting exterior inspections of all the city’s residential properties after Labor Day. Commercial inspections will be conducted by the city assessor and property appraiser.

“They’re going to have a team of as many as 12 people or more, but they won’t be able to make it up here right away,” said City Assessor Terry Johnson. One person will be coming up just after Labor Day to start doing exterior inspections, Johnson said. “That person is going to go to one neighborhood and start taking pictures of everything — front and back yards and improvements on the property,” Johnson said.

Johnson is currently working on letters to notify property owners of the revaluation and introduce Associated Appraisal Consultants as the inspectors, he said. They will have IDs and drive vehicles with the company name on them, he said. The city has about 8,300 residential parcels with at least one building on them to inspect.

The only properties that will be subject of interior inspections are those that had permitted work on the interior that was done, Johnson said. The last time a full revaluation of the city was done was 1999. A statistical review of the sales was done in 2005, resulting in many properties being reassessed. 

“They updated the models statistically and made some adjustments, but they didn’t actually review all the properties,” Johnson said. While the city has good information about many of the properties in Superior, he said some property owners may have made changes that the city is not aware of that could affect the value.

“Any improvement to the property is assessable; it’s a matter of how much value does it contribute,” Johnson said. Things like siding, new windows, bathrooms and kitchens are most likely to increase the value of a home.

According to the Wisconsin Department of Revenue, property values in a municipality should be between 90% and 110% of the overall market value. The equated value provided by the Department of Revenue in fall 2022 shows Superior was at around 72%, Johnson said.

Once the inspections are complete, that information will be reviewed to reset the values to match what a home would likely sell for, Johnson said. The goal is to notify property owners of their new values by late summer next year so the Board of Review can hear any appeals in fall 2024.

Johnson encouraged people with questions to watch the “Who are Assessors” video on the Assessor’s website at ci.superior.wi.us.

He said some property owners could see their property values increase, but their property taxes go down.

Historically, the overall mill rate in Superior has fallen in the year when new valuations have gone into effect.



“What we’re trying to do is to make sure everyone is equalized on what they are paying based on their value,” Johnson said. “The bottom line is what would your property sell for?”

“They’re going to have a team of as many as 12 people or more, they won’t be able to make it up here right away,” said City Assessor Terry Johnson. One person will be coming up just after Labor Day to start doing exterior inspections, Johnson said.”

Let me get this straight. We hired them in April 2022 at a cost of $355,000.00 and over a year later only one out twelve or more is going to show up? Where are the rest of them? Where did they go?

 JUNE 21,2024

695. Superior’s Board of Review gets alternate member in anticipation of more appeals 

By Shelley Nelson - Superior Telegram

SUPERIOR — The city is making changes to its Assessment Board of Review.

The Superior City Council approved an ordinance that makes the city clerk an alternate on the panel with voting privileges when any of the five members are absent or recuse themselves from voting.

Councilors amended the ordinance change Tuesday, June 18, to ensure a majority of board members are residents of the city of Superior before adopting the change. The Assessment Board of Review is responsible for reviewing property assessments and correcting any errors or omissions on the assessment rolls.

“The revalue has our assessor a little concerned that we’ll have more claims than usual, or appeals,” Mayor Jim Paine said. “Normally, we get one or two claims a year … but we’re reassessing everyone so there could be more appeals.”

The city assessor is currently working with Associated Appraisal Consultants to review every commercial and residential property value in Superior after sale prices started to rise dramatically in the city. All of the inspections have been completed, and appraisers are looking at schedules to determine how land will be valued, said City Assessor Terry Johnson.

“We’ve got to get this all wrapped up by the end of July, early August, so we can send out notices come August,” Johnson said. The completed assessment roll will be open for examination in late August and early September to give the public the opportunity to meet with the assessor and determine if their assessment is fair.

The Assessment Board of Review will meet at 9 a.m. Oct. 2 to hear any objections regarding the assessment of property; however, people contesting their assessment must file a written objection with the City Clerk’s Office.

Paine said if the meeting runs multiple days, it could create a challenge for residents who serve on the board to attend every day the board meets.

“We still want it to be a citizen committee, so this is just filling in, in case we need to maintain a quorum to make sure we get a decent, fair decision,” Paine said.

Paine said he selected the city clerk because the position is familiar with the Assessment Board of Review processes and doesn’t work directly with the city assessor on the property valuations. Plus, as city staff, the clerk will be present during the meetings, he said.

Councilor Jack Sweeney proposed amending the ordinance to ensure that all of the appointed members of the board are residents of Superior.

“The Board of Review is one of the tougher ones to appoint because it’s somewhat technical work,” Paine said. “You need to have folks with some familiarity with property values.”

Without the residency requirement, Paine said it would allow him to appoint someone who spent their whole career working in real estate, even if they retired out in Poplar or an appraiser who lives in Duluth. A compromise would be to require a majority of members to be residents of Superior, said Councilor Tylor Elm.

While Sweeney and Councilors Brent Fennessey and Mark Johnson voted against the compromise amendment, they ultimately voted in favor of the ordinance as amended because there would have been no residency requirement for the appointed members if it had been adopted as the ordinance was originally written.

At this point, I would settle for someone with a brain. I don’t care where they are from.

What I take from this is they knew in June, 2024 that this whole situation was looking bad and this was one of first steps of “damage control”. But in the end it was just an exercise in futility and Jim Paine was right in the middle of it. And in over his head as usual. I think it was around this time, June 2024 that he was alerted how bad these tax increases were going to be and this was his first attempt to deal with it. But as you all know it turned out to be futile.



An Exercise in Futility is an activity that has no point, use, or meaning; which produces no result, and is therefore not worth attempting.

Jim Paine, Mayor of Superior

August 19, 2024

Over the last few days, property owners began receiving assessment revaluation letters. I’ll explain how this works in the comments and answer what questions I can but here’s the short version: Your new assessment will have little to no impact on your property tax bill. You can challenge the new assessment, however, if you believe it doesn’t fairly represent the market value of your property.

Here are some of your comments from that post, and a few from the Mayor himself:

1-Your taxes are drowning your people man. 

2-Jim Paine, Mayor of Superior

Why was my property revalued?

We revalued all properties in the city and created new assessments for everyone. The state requires this when our assessed values stray too far from the equalized (or market) value for too long. If the difference between market value and assessed value becomes too large, it can be unfair to property tax payers, especially if your home’s value hasn’t kept pace with the market. That’s what happened in Superior. Most properties kept pace with the market and their tax bills have been close to fair, but close isn’t good enough. We need to know the true value of your property to fairly apply the tax rate.

3-Jim Paine, Mayor of Superior

My assessed value doubled! Does that mean my taxes will double?

No. Since we revalued all property, and the market has been consistently climbing in value, all property values have gone up. But the city isn’t likely to collect much more in taxes and you’ll still be sharing that burden with everyone else, whose assessments also climbed. So your taxes will be similar to last year. Any increase or decrease is likely to be about the same as previous years. Most folks will see a small change, a few bucks higher or lower than last year.

4-Just got my property tax bill. My total due increased 42.4%. No major improvements made in over 10 years. I don't understand how this jives with your assurances in this post. I'm curious if others are seeing the same increases? 

5-Not much or at all?? How about a 57% increase! No major improvements to the home. What is happening?

6-Hard to believe my home more than double in value increased. 

And there are many more comments on his Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/MayorJimPaine

The Mayor said: “Your new assessment will have little to no impact on your property tax bill. You can challenge the new assessment.” 



I mean he just goes on and on. It’s just so nauseating. And he is blaming the state as well. 

Property values climb in Superior

Since 2005, all properties have increased in value by an average of 60% with residential properties climbing an average of 70%.

By Shelley Nelson

September 03, 2024 at 6:57 AM

SUPERIOR — Many property owners in Superior were in for a surprise when they opened their mail earlier this month and saw their new property value assessment. The last time property assessments were adjusted citywide was 2005.

Over the last 19 years, the total assessed value of real estate in the city of Superior rose by an average of 60%. Residential property values increased by an average of 70%.

“A good question to ask is ‘Could you sell it for this?’” City Assessor Terry Johnson said. “And if not, then we will work with people to look at those values.” State law requires property assessments to be within 10% of the state's equalized value at least once in every five-year period. Superior’s equalized property values remained within that margin until the early 2020s when housing prices in the city started to climb.

“Our assessment ratio was getting closer to 50% (of the equalized value),” Johnson said. He said assessments increased because a lot of properties were under-assessed when compared to what they would sell for now. The goal behind the revaluation is to establish equal and fair assessments of all values, according to Johnson. Estimating market value of property is determined by the price a typical buyer would pay for a property in its present condition. Assessors consider what similar properties are selling for, what it would cost to replace the property, the rent it may earn and any other factors that affect value such as improvements.

Economic conditions such as interest rates, inflation, supply and demand, and changes in tax law can also influence the value of real estate.

Johnson said he anticipates making adjustments to the tax rolls through September to get the most accurate tax roll before the Assessment Board of Review meets Oct. 2. The board will consider formal objections from property owners that must be submitted in writing on a form provided by the City Clerk’s Office. The notice of the appeal must be made at least 48 hours before the board’s first scheduled meeting.

Residents will have the opportunity to question their new assessments during the Open Book period that takes place Thursday, Sept. 5 and Friday, Sept. 6 by appointment in Room 270 of the Government Center. Residents can call 920-749-1995 or email info@apraz.com to set up an appointment.

Commercial property owners should call 715-395-7222 or email cityassessor@ci.superior.wi.us for appointments in the city assessor’s office Wednesday, Sept. 4 and Thursday, Sept. 5.

“The most important thing I’ve been telling everybody … just reach out to us right now,” said Mayor Jim Paine.

Assessments people received can still be adjusted, Paine said.

“If you’ve got any evidence — I mean Zillow, an appraiser,” Paine said. “I’m talking to a lot of folks who just bought their property two years ago or they just had an appraisal two years ago. That’s evidence and we can adjust these assessments down.”

An increase in the assessed value of a property does not necessarily mean the owner will pay more property taxes.

Paine said it’s really too early to tell what impact the new assessments will have on property taxes in 2025 because a number of factors including tax levies imposed by the city, county, school district and technical college; new properties being added to the tax rolls, and the overall value of the city all play a role in setting the mill rate.

Historically, while tax levies have increased, when assessed values rose, mill rates have dropped. That's the amount of property taxes paid for every $1,000 of assessed property value.

Following a revaluation in 1993, the mill rate dropped to $32.35 from $36.15 in 1992. In 2000, it dropped to $22.97 from $30.27 from the previous year; and the 2005 revaluation resulted in the mill rate dropping from $27.77 in 2004 to $19.54 in 2005.

Johnson said he has received calls from people who stated that their value increased by 200%. He said in those cases, it means the property was undervalued and others paid the property taxes those property owners should have paid.

“We’re just trying to make sure it’s an equal and fair assessment,” Johnson said.

“I think a lot of people would be surprised to know just how much their house would sell for in 2024, and you know that’s real wealth for people,” Paine said. “It may not feel like it, but you can leverage that. You can borrow against it. And I’m not giving financial advice to anybody here, but if your house is worth twice what it was … that means you’re worth twice what you were before. You will get that money someday or your heirs will.” 

Let’s go over this mess: 

1-I want to start with City Assessor Terry Johnson. He said the following: 

“A good question to ask is ‘Could you sell it for this?’” 

Well based on the hundreds of comments from you, the taxpayers the answer is “NO”.

On Blog 77, I spoke about a few friends who were concerned with their assessments. Here is one of their stories. 

My friend purchased a home in Superior a couple of years ago for $90,000.00. On his 2023 taxes the home was assessed for $100,000.00. His taxes were $1,600.00. Forward to 2024. He got a letter from the city and his new assessment was now $200,000,00. He called me. I begged him to call the city and contest the assessment. He didn’t. And the reason he didn’t was because Mayor Paine said that taxes weren’t necessarily going to up despite having higher assessments. 

I imagine a lot of people didn’t because of what Paine said and found it hard to fathom that the city would ever raise taxes in the manner they did. He also had done no work to it. My friend is on social security and has to watch every dollar. I got a call just before Christmas. He was freaking out. His tax bill is $2,350.00. That’s an increase $750.00, almost 50%. Oh, and the assessment on the tax bill was $214,000.00. That’s $14,000.00 more that the letter he got. He would happily sell it for that to anybody who would like to buy it at the assessed price, take the money and move the hell out of town. And one more thing, his insurance went $400.00. Merry Christmas.

2-“We’re just trying to make sure it’s an equal and fair assessment,” Johnson said. Well, I will give Mr. Johnson a great big, fat F- for that effort based on what the taxpayers of Superior are saying.

3- And speaking of taxpayers, how come “#1 Mayor Paine Fan Girl” Shelley Nelson didn’t interview some of them for this article? 

4-Then the Mayor is babbling on about “Zillow”, ”call him”, “call the city” “mill rates” and all kinds of crazy stuff. At this point he is grasping for straws and I’m grasping for a Tesla charger so I can hook it up to my brain. But my favorite is when he says:

“but if your house is worth twice what it was … that means you’re worth twice what you were before. You will get that money someday or your heirs will.” 



Yes Mayor, I want to struggle to get by so I can leave my over-assessed home to my kids so they can blow it all on a 5-star tour of Europe for a year! NO THANKS.

 Here is an article from North News Now

Property values rise in Superior following city-wide assessment

By Jeffrey McClure

Published: Sep. 4, 2024

SUPERIOR, Wis. (Northern News Now) Superior residents are receiving letters, showing an increase in their property values for the first time in more than a decade.

“The city of Superior just recently sent out a notice that they’ve re-assessed all of the properties in the City of Superior. Mine personally as a homeowner went up about 50% to 60%,” said Superior resident Megan Wilson.

Wilson like many Superiorities has been told her property value has increased.

Unlike most residents, Wilson is also a realtor and felt the city’s assessment was not out of the ordinary.

“I took a look at the letter and I was like ‘Oh okay that’s not bad’ and kind of as a real estate professional, I know what the market value of my property is, and to be honest, the assessed value is still a little bit below the market value,” said Wilson.

For many residents, it caught them off guard because the last city-wide assessment came in 2005 because the city stayed near the market rate.

But, due to a recent housing market boom in the past five years, the 2005 assessment was no longer inside the 10% levy set by Wisconsin and they were required to have an assessment done by law.

“We can’t keep up with 60%, 70%, 80% value increases across the whole city. So, in other words, the market moved so fast, the law required us to do this,” said Superior Mayor Jim Paine.

So, Superior homeowners will likely see an increase in their property value by around 60%.

Since the letters have been sent out Wilson, has taken calls from clients, concerned with what it means for property taxes.

“People are worried their taxes are going to go up, they might a little bit. But they’re not going to go up by the percentage your assessed value goes up,” said Wilson.

City leaders agree, saying that because values spiked for almost everyone, a large tax increase will not follow.

According to Wilson, realtors are more than willing to help through this process, so reach out to your realtor if you have questions. Otherwise, the city of Superior allows you to appeal your home’s assessed value.

Please call Associated Appraisal (920-749-1995) at least 24 hours before making an appointment for the Open Book meetings beginning on Thursday.

Thursday, September 5th, 2024 (Noon – 7:00 PM).

Friday, September 6th, 2024 (8:00 AM – Noon).



Appeals need to be completed by the Board of Review date which is Wednesday, October 2.

 In this article Mayor Paine blames the “Law”. Here is what he said:

“We can’t keep up with 60%, 70%, 80% value increases across the whole city. So, in other words, the market moved so fast, the law required us to do this,” said Superior Mayor Jim Paine.



Then local realtor and resident Megan Wilson had this to say:

“People are worried their taxes are going to go up, they might a little bit. But they’re not going to go up by the percentage your assessed value goes up,” said Wilson.” 

Unfortunately for many of you that was not the outcome was it?

I ran this article from Craig Sutherland’s Facebook page on Blog 77. I also ran a story on that Blog about taxes in the different cities I lived in. Below is Craig’s post.

Here is a post from Craig Sutherland’s Facebook page on Saturday Dec 14, 2024

Craig Sutherland

**Please Share**

Recently, the city reassessed property values to keep up with the times. If residents were unhappy with their assessments, they had the option to contest them. Only 3% of residents chose to do so, and among them was Councilor Garner Moffat. He successfully argued that his property was assessed too high and should be valued 15% less, resulting in lower property taxes for him. It’s quite ironic that a city councilor is seeking to pay less in taxes while the rest of us are dealing with increased spending.



Fast forward two months, and now Garner Moffat is asking for a salary increase of over 25% as a city councilor. Help me make sense of this situation!

 Here are some of the comments that people left on his post.

1-It doesn’t make for good optics. However one of the weaknesses of Superior is the near amateur status of being a city councilor. Little wonder few have the energy or time to disagree with the ruling regime.

2-We have the wrong people in office that's all.

3-It's sad to say but our government is corrupt even at a local level. The city I live in is a total dumpster fire right now. 

4-You need to run and get that turkey shit of a mayor out. This is what is wrong with America. People in power like this… 

Well I can’t disagree with any of this. There’s more comments on Craig’s post at:

https://www.facebook.com/craig.sutherland.771

 Then there is this article from out friends at Soupnutz.net.

Skyrocketing Property Taxes: Mayor Jim Paine’s Overspending Forces Residents to Foot the Bill

Mayor Paine’s Reckless Spending and Council’s Blind Loyalty Are Crushing Superior Taxpayers

Superior taxpayers are being pushed to the financial brink. Property tax bills are surging anywhere from 10% to 90% following skyrocketing reassessments, yet Mayor Jim Paine continues to expand city spending with little regard for the financial burden placed on residents. Worse still, a core group of city councilors — Lindsey Graskey, Ruth Ludwig, Garner Moffat, Nicholas Ledin, Tylor Elm, and the mayor’s wife, Councilor Jenny Van Sickle — have enabled this mess through their unwavering support of the mayor’s fiscal decisions.

Families Struggle as Spending Grows

Homeowners across Superior are now staring down shocking property tax hikes, with increases ranging from 10% to 90%. These sharp jumps come after reassessments pushed property values up an average of 60% citywide. For families already struggling with rising costs of living, these tax hikes are not just painful — they’re unsustainable.

Rather than offer relief or show fiscal restraint, Mayor Paine’s 2025 budget inflates city spending to $35.9 million. To make matters worse, the mayor is pushing for $10 million in new debt for vague “potential projects” without offering residents any clear plan or accountability.

Yet Mayor Paine’s reckless fiscal behavior doesn’t stop there. His own unpaid city utility bills wound up on his property taxes a glaring sign of carelessness that raises serious questions about his ability to manage the city’s finances responsibly.

Council Enables the Mayor’s Financial Mess

CITY COUNCIL

While residents struggle with rising taxes and growing frustration, Mayor Paine has found unwavering allies on the city council. City Councilors Lindsey Graskey, Ruth Ludwig, Garner Moffat, Nicholas Ledin, Tylor Elm, and Jenny Van Sickle — the mayor’s own wife — have rubber-stamped his spending priorities and borrowing proposals without holding him accountable for their consequences.

Their loyalty to the mayor comes at the direct expense of Superior taxpayers. Instead of standing up for residents being crushed by 10% to 90% tax hikes, this group has repeatedly chosen to support budgets and policies that increase spending and push the city further into debt.

Taxpayers Deserve Accountability

Superior families deserve leadership that prioritizes their needs, not leadership that expands government spending while ignoring the very real struggles of taxpayers. Mayor Paine’s financial missteps — combined with the blind support of councilors Graskey, Ludwig, Moffat, Ledin, Elm, and Van Sickle — have created a financial mess that homeowners now have to clean up.

It’s time for real accountability. City leaders must rein in spending, reject unnecessary borrowing, and make taxpayers their top priority.

Mayor and Councilors Property Taxes 

Mayor Paine 2024 Taxes & 2023 Taxes : $293.29 or 14.91% Increase

Tylor Elms 2024 Taxes & 2023 Taxes : $725.45 or 44.27% Increase 

Garner Moffat 2024 Taxes & 2023 Taxes : $991.99 or 88.59% Increase

Nicholas Ledin 2024 Taxes & 2023 Taxes : $252.53 or 14.03% Increase

Lindsey Graskey No Property Tax Records Located

Jenny Van Sickle No Property Tax Records Located

Ruth Ludwig No Property Tax Records Located

Sourced : Douglas County Web Portal

Sources NorthernNews

Great article as always! 

I thought I was going to get this whole story on one Blog but I found so much stuff that it’s going to take another Blog to get through it all. So stay tuned for:

THE GREAT SUPERIOR SHOCKING TAX SWINDLE PT 3