Perseverance paid off for homeowner Elizabeth Ferran in late June after the Lewisboro assessor rescinded an increase in her home’s taxable value because she’d installed a climate-friendly heat pump to heat and cool her home’s first floor.
Now Lewisboro Assessor Lise Richardson is waiting for the state to weigh in on whether the addition of a heat pump should make a property’s assessment rise. Richardson’s move marked the latest turn in a two-year saga for Ferran, who decided to install a mini-split in her living room during a 2022 heat wave after her wall-unit air conditioner died. Heat pumps, which run on electricity, are promoted by environmentalists as a way to transition from fossil fuels like oil and natural gas.