There are 596 real properties in La Plata County for which over $1 million in 2023 property taxes have not been paid, Treasurer Moni Grushkin said.
Grushkin will publish a legal notice with the names and addresses of delinquent taxpayers in print editions of The Durango Herald on Wednesday, Oct. 16 and 23, all in advance of the Nov. 7 tax lien sale.
The number is down slightly from the 666 properties that had yet to pay at time of publication last year, although the sum of the back taxes is about the same.
Grushkin’s office will auction off the liens next month, allowing investors to bid on the tax debt. The proceeds are used to pay off the delinquencies.
Property owners must then compensate the investor for the back taxes plus 15% annual interest to have the lien removed. If the taxes and associated interest and fees have not been paid within three years, the lien-holder may apply for a treasurer’s deed to the property.
“One of my objectives for this office is to ensure or try to minimize the number of delinquent property taxes that go to tax lien sale for taxpayers that want to pay their taxes,” Grushkin said. “If they are knowingly ignoring to pay their taxes, it goes to tax lien sale. But if, for some reason, they’re not aware that they have outstanding taxes, we’re doing what we can with some research to get in touch with those folks to prevent it from going to tax lien sale.”
This year’s largest outstanding tax bill is $44,350, which includes $2,500 in interest, is owed on the Baymont by Wyndham Durango hotel in the 3200 block of Main Avenue. The property is owned by a Utah-based company.
The Francisco’s building, located on the west side of Main Avenue’s 600 block, was sold in a foreclosure sale last month and Grushkin said she expects the $41,500 tax bill for that property, the second largest in the county, to be paid soon.
Durango River View RV Resort, the proposed luxury resort on Trimble Lane (County Road 252), is responsible for the third largest delinquent bill in the county of $26,800. Scott Roberts, the developer behind the project, said in an email that no one on his team had a record of the bill arriving in the mail. The company paid the bill Tuesday, according to a copy of a check reviewed by the Herald.
The $1 million in back taxes owed on all of the 596 real property accounts pales in comparison to the debt owed by Simcoe LLC, the natural gas producer responsible for an $11.9 million tax bill that was not paid on time this year. The company is paying off the debt in $600,000 increments with 1% monthly interest. Grushkin confirmed that the company intends to repay the debt by the end of 2024.
Even though the legal notice will run again Oct. 16 and 23, the list will not be updated as property owners pay their taxes. Delinquent taxes can be paid until noon Nov. 6, the day before the tax lien sale begins.
rschafir@durangoherald.com
