CLAYTON — The ӣƵ County Council voted against extending the application deadline for the county’s popular senior property tax freeze program.
The deadline to apply is Monday. Republican Councilman Dennis Hancock, of Fenton, suggested extending it by a month for seniors who need more time to apply. But after county revenue Director Tony Smee said the delay will “jeopardize the successful execution of the initiative,” the council voted down Hancock’s proposal 4-3.
The delay would have forced the county to only review as many applications as it could get through, and leave the remainder unfinished, Smee said in a letter to the council dated Wednesday. It could have also forced the county to approve all applications without reviewing them for eligibility.
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Applications first opened in October. Since then, more than 65,000 homeowners have applied. But for much of that time, appointments for application assistance went unfilled, Smee said. The appointments only filled up in the past few weeks.
The county recommends . Staff may not be able to handle all walk-ins, according to ӣƵ County Executive Sam Page. Walk-ins who do receive help could encounter long wait times.
In-person assistance is available 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Friday and Monday at four county locations:
- County government headquarters: 41 South Central Avenue, Clayton.
- Northwest Crossing: 715 Northwest Plaza Drive, St. Ann.
- South County: 4554 Lemay Ferry Road, ӣƵ.
- West County: 70 Clarkson Wilson Center, Chesterfield.
Northwest Crossing will stay open until 8 p.m. on Monday, and will open 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday.
Online applications will be accepted until 11:59 p.m. Monday.
Page said people should not come to the offices to update their files or check on the status of their application.
Lisa Clancy (D-Maplewood), Mark Harder (R-Ballwin), Mike Archer (R-South County) and Gretchen Bangert (D-Florissant) voted against Hancock’s proposal.
ӣƵ County Council members Lisa Clancy and Mark Harder on July 11 discuss the plan to freeze property taxes for senior citizens. Video by Beth O'Malley