La Plata County Assessor Craig Larson said Tuesday he will run for an eighth term.
Larson, 63, has served as assessor since January 1987.
“I’m still excited about what I do,” he said. “Changes are coming all the time.”
The assessor conducts property valuations that determine property taxes paid by owners. Larson oversees 16 employees and a $1.2 million annual budget.
The assessor’s office is increasingly digital. Staff will begin carrying tablet computers in the field this year.
“We can get quite a bit done right in the field,” Larson said.
Property owners can opt to receive their valuation notices by email this year for the first time. The Assessor’s Office is putting more information online for real estate agents, buyers and others to research.
Larson’s office is based in the County Courthouse. Plans call for it to move across the street to the former Vectra Bank building, 1101 East Second Ave., that the county now owns.
Larson was born and raised in Denver but has lived in Durango for more than 40 years. He earned a bachelor’s degree in geology from Fort Lewis College and a master’s in public administration from the University of Colorado at Denver.
He has not had an opponent in recent elections. No one else has announced entry into the November race for assessor.
cslothower@durangoherald.com
