Facebook Inc.’s data center at 6007 N.E. 46th St. in Altoona is the commercial property in Polk County with the highest assessed full valuation, assessor records show. The property is assessed at $393 million. Photo courtesy of Polk County assessor

Facebook Inc.’s Altoona data centers are the two commercial properties in Polk County with the highest assessed valuations, a review of data from the assessor’s office shows.

The data center at 6007 N.E. 46th St., on which construction began in 2018, was valued at $393 million, a 58% increase over its 2020 assessed valuation of $248.3 million. Facebook’s data center at 1700 34th Ave. N.W. was valued at $388 million, a 35% increase over 2020’s value of $287.1 million, records show.

Overall, six of Polk County’s seven commercial and industrial properties with the highest assessed property values were data centers. The other four data center properties are owned by Microsoft Corp. and are located in West Des Moines.

Property on which Amazon Inc.’s distribution center is located in Bondurant was valued at $281.6 million, the third-highest property valuation in Polk County among non-tax-exempt commercial and industrial parcels.

The 2021 assessed valuations of all property in Polk County was released to property owners earlier this month. State law requires counties to revalue properties at least every odd-numbered year. Some counties revalue commercial property every year.

Overall, the assessed valuation of property in Polk County was $51.18 billion, 11.4% higher than 2019’s value of $45.9 billion, information provided by the Polk County Assessor’s Office shows. Officials have emphasized that the 2021 value will likely change after appeals by property owners are heard and decided on by the county’s Board of Review.

The value of the 9,329 commercial properties in the county rose an average of 9.2%. However, there were large fluctuations within different commercial classifications. For instance, the value of warehouse property rose an average of 35% while the value of properties that include hotels, theaters, restaurants and bars, and health and recreation fell an average of 30%. In addition, the valuation of office, retail, banks, fast food and grocery properties grew an average of 3%.

Owners of the seven highest valued properties in Polk County will pay property taxes on adjusted values rather than full valuations. The landowners reached agreements with city officials before development on the parcels began. The agreements allow the property owners to only pay property taxes on an agreed upon percentage of the valuation for a predetermined number of years.

More online
View an interactive map that shows the 139 non-tax-exempt commercial, industrial and multifamily properties in Polk County with assessed valuations of $15 million or more. The information includes the property owner, address of property, the property’s 2020 and 2021 assessed valuations, and the percentage change. View the accompanying spreadsheet.

How to file a protest of 2021 property valuation
Polk County has mailed 2021 property valuation assessment notices to property owners. If an owner believes the assessment is unfair or inaccurate, they can file a protest with the Board of Review until April 30. Appeals can be mailed, emailed or faxed. The assessor’s office is not open to the public due to COVID-19 restrictions. Also, until April 25 property owners can request an informal review of their assessment. If an agreement is reached, the parties will enter into a written agreement authorizing the assessor to adjust the assessment. For questions, call the assessor at 515-286-3014 or email polkweb@assess.co.polk.ia.us.