Warren County committee to advance $311,000 proposed write-off of outstanding taxes on county-owned parcels; transfer to Johnsburg stalled

Warren County staff told the Environmental Concerns and Real Property Tax Services committee that roughly $311,000 in outstanding taxes tied to county-owned parcels could be cleaned from the county’s books, and the committee agreed to move the write-off discussion to the next meeting for formal action.

Director Mckima reviewed a cleaned-up list of county-owned properties — many near the county airport and several located in wetlands or otherwise unusable for county purposes — and said that after removing two parcels (one in Johnsburg with a pending purchase contract and the Mullins property on Bay Road) the total outstanding taxes being considered for write-off would be about $311,000. “If you were to look at this list and take out the two properties that Kristen just mentioned, it would be about $311,000 that we would need to write off,” she said.

Director Mckima told the committee writing off the liabilities would be budget-neutral because the county would decrease both assets and liabilities when the entries are removed from the books.

Assistant County Attorney Chris Briggs provided a legal update on the Johnsburg parcel, saying the county has a signed contract with the town of Johnsburg for the county to transfer the parcel after New York State Department of Environmental Conservation remediation was completed. “We do have a signed contract between the county and the town of Johnsburg that they were to purchase that property once the remediation's completed by the New York State DEC,” Briggs said, adding that remediation was finished more than two years ago and the town has not completed the deed transfer.

Committee members discussed reviewing the contract terms — which Briggs said included a 60‑day purchase window after remediation — engaging the incoming Johnsburg supervisor and pursuing next steps to either prompt the town to act or to resume market efforts. Staff also reported there are 108 parcels still on the foreclosure list with a July 31 deadline for owners to pay or enter installment agreements; about 14 parcels were identified by a subcommittee as potential surplus for sale.

The committee voted to move the proposed write-off and related documentation forward to the next meeting as an action item so members could review contract language and staff could return with any estimated values or additional recommendations.