A Bettendorf resident who ran unsuccessfully for alderman on a platform opposing expansion of city recreation trails is seeking a property tax exemption for half of his 10-acre residential lot located next to a new section of the Crow Creek Recreation Trail.
Chad Miller, of 4340 Tangelwood Road, has asked the Scott County Board to designate the land as "forest cover," thus making the property tax exempt under a 1990 Iowa law.
According to Scott County officials, the state Slough Bill allows counties to provide tax exemptions "for wetlands, recreational lakes, forest cover, forest reservation, rivers and streams, river and stream banks, wildlife habitat, native prairies and open prairies." However, the county will not consider such exemptions within the corporate limits of local municipalities unless the affected city first approves the exemption request.
The city council is expected to consider setting a public hearing date on the forest cover designation request at Tuesday's (6/4) meeting.
Miller ran unsuccessfully for alderman at-large in the 2011 municipal election. He has appeared frequently at city council meetings to oppose expansion of recreational trails in the city and the extension of the trail section running along Crow Creek near his home.
When the city was unable to obtain an easement from Miller for the Crow Creek Trail, officials reconfigured the route to bypass use of his property.
