Norwich grand list up 2%

Norwich — The city’s grand list of taxable property rose by $43 million last year, a 2% increase over the previous year, Assessor William Lee said.

Lee filed the grand list Tuesday with total net value of $2.13 billion for combined real estate, motor vehicles and personal property values.

Real estate values rose by $11.3 million to a total of $1.68 million, an increase of 0.67%. Lee said there has been “quite a bit of new construction,” including large apartment buildings. Motor vehicle values increased by $21.6 million, including 1,065 new cars, Lee said.

Personal property values also increased by $11 million, including expansion of Nordson EFD manufacturing plant in the Norwich Business Park. Norwich also received a boost in personal property with the closing of the former Freeport McMoRan copper manufacturing plant on Wawecus Street.

When it operated, the plant was among the city’s top taxpayers, but still received major state exemptions on manufacturing equipment. With the closure, about $6 million in manufacturing equipment still in the shuttered plant became taxable.

“If it’s being used just as a storage facility, that doesn’t qualify (for the state manufacturing exemption,” Lee said.

Overall exemptions in all three grand list categories dropped by $2.57 million.

Lee said the Hampton Inn on Route 82 and the Hills at Riverview apartment complex are nearing the end of their phased tax breaks, reducing exemptions and boosting real estate values.

Overall, the 2% increase in the grand list would generate an additional $1.4 million in taxes citywide at the current citywide tax rate of 41.83 mills, city Comptroller Josh Pothier said.

The city’s top 10 taxpayers and their assessments are:

■ Computer Sciences Corp., 100 Winnenden Road, $33.9 million.

■ TKG Norwich (Norwichtown Commons shopping center), 42-44 Town St., $17.5 million.

■ Bob’s (CT) QRS (Bob’s Discount Furniture distribution center), 70 Jewett City Road, $16.7 million.

■ Connecticut Light & Power, $13.7 million.

■ US Foods, Inc. food distribution center, 222 Otrobando Ave., $11.4 million .

■ Norwich Realty Association, (Marcus Plaza shopping center) 624 W. Main St., $11.38 million.

■ Plaza Enterprises (shopping center, 113 Salem Turnpike, $11 million.

■ Nordson EFD LLC, manufacturing plant, 10 Connecticut Ave., $10.4 million.

■ Mashantucket Pequot tribe, (Spa at Norwich Inn), 607 W. Thames St., $9.89 million.

■ Elk Thamesview LLC (apartment complex), 495 Laurel Hill Ave., $9.49 million.