Lower Burrell Family Dollar property to have its real estate tax slashed by 40%

Real estate taxes on the Family Dollar Store in Lower Burrell apparently will be slashed for this year and next.

The Burrell School Board approved a real estate assessment appeal settlement with Greensburg Road LLC, et. al., the owner of the property.

The settlement would reduce its school taxes by $23,656, or 37% this year and by $25,344 in 2026.

That amounts to 40% savings from the property’s current tax bill of $63,139.

After the 2026 reduction, its annual school property tax bill would be $37,483.

The property, located near the intersection of Greensburg Road and Logans Ferry Road, was originally developed as a Walgreens Pharmacy. It is assessed at $517,530 by Westmoreland County and has been at that level since 2020.

“The board approved the settlement to mitigate a further reduction,” said Jennifer Callahan, Burrell’s business administrator.

She said the property’s owners initially filed for a cut that would lower the current $3.5 million fair market value to $2.5 million. The two parties settled on a $3.4 million fair market value, Callahan said.

The appeal was filed based on Greensburg Road LLC’s contention that rental rates in the market have declined.

“The reduction would have been 36% worse,” said attorney Ryan Notzen of Andrews and Price, the school district’s solicitor, who negotiated the settlement.

The agreement has to be approved by the other two taxing bodies, the Westmoreland County commissioners and Lower Burrell Council.

Lower Burrell Treasurer Frank Trozzi said that has not yet happened.

“We typically go along with the school district because they have the most to lose,” Trozzi said.

City taxes paid on the Family Dollar property are currently $12,809 while county taxes are $14,739.

If the same percentage reductions for school taxes are applied, city taxes on the property would be cut by $4,739 this year and $5,124 in 2026, with the new tax bill being $7,685, after that.

Using the same reasoning for the county, the 2025 reduction would be $5,453 and then $5,896 in 2026.

The new county tax bill would then hold at $8,843.