Re “Get rid of large tax break for wealthy landowners” (April 5): This letter’s comments about the Mills Act tax dodge are missing the whole point of the program, which is to protect historically significant structures. This is a cultural preservation issue, not a tax issue. The tax break is an incentive for owners to protect their historically important properties from being lost to developers or altered by future owners. A property owner seeking to register for the Mills Act must also understand that in doing so, it will severely restrict the possibility of making future changes to the structure which could be a financial handicap when it comes time to sell the property.
Not all structures are eligible to gain Mills Act status. There is a rigorous process that the jurisdictional authority undertakes to determine the structure’s historical significance. That’s why you’re not going to see a newer multimillion-dollar tract house in an outlying community gain Mills Act approval anytime soon.
— Matthew Wells, Point Loma