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Discounted Jury Verdict Upheld on Appeal
A New Jersey appellate court recently rejected a property owner’s claim that it was deprived of just compensation because the jury verdict reflected a discount for the cost of environmental remediation on its property. New Jersey Schools Construction Corporation v. Warminster Investments Corporation, et als., Docket No. A-5319-07T15319-07T1. Warminster, the property owner, argued that the jury... Read More
Camden Property Owners Succeed in Having Properties Removed from Redevelopment Area
The Camden City Council amended its Lanning Square Redevelopment Plan during a special meeting on December 29, 2009, to remove two blocks from the property acquisition list. The amendments were part of a settlement agreement with two of the parties involved in litigation that began in 2008 after the redevelopment plan was announced. The Camden... Read More
Long Branch to Protect Owners from Eminent Domain
Following a settlement agreement that permitted homeowners in the MTOTSA section of Long Branch to remain in their homes (read about it here), the Long Branch City Council is expected to revise the area’s zoning laws to grandfather the use of the remaining homes under the previous code while requiring new construction to... Read More
Tax Court Remands Revaluation Order
In Mount Laurel Twp. v. Burlington County Board of Taxation, __ N.J. Tax __ (December 15, 2009) (Approved for Publication in N.J. Tax Reports) the New Jersey Tax Court remanded an appeal from a revaluation order by the Burlington County Tax Board. Mount Laurel Township appealed the board’s order for a municipal-wide revaluation. Both the... Read More
Dueling Supreme Courts to Decide Beach Replenishment Takings Issues Heard on Same Day
The United States Supreme Court and New Jersey Supreme Court heard oral arguments on the same day this week in cases focusing on the issue of where a beachfront property owner’s rights end, and the public’s rights begin, when the government decides to replenish beaches with public funds. The United States Supreme Court, in Stop... Read More
Bill Proposes Limit on Tax Court Filings, and Reduces Notice Requirements
The Senate Community and Urban Affairs Committee released a statement reporting favorably on S. 2711, and recommended several amendments to the bill as introduced. The bill is sponsored by Senators Robert W. Singer, Paul A. Sarlo, as Primary Sponsors, and Senator Thomas H. Kean, Jr., as a Co-Sponsor. The identical Assembly bill, A. 4313, is sponsored by... Read More
New Jersey Supreme Court Considers Tenants' Rights to Notice in Redevelopment Challenge
The New Jersey Supreme Court heard oral arguments this week in a case regarding the rights of commercial tenants to notice under the provisions of New Jersey’s Local Redevelopment and Housing Law. Iron Mountain Information Management, Inc. v. City of Newark (A-100-08). The issue presented to the Court was framed: “When property is targeted for redevelopment pursuant to the... Read More
NY Court of Appeals Deals Blow to Property Owners In Atlantic Yards Case
Within weeks of Pfizer abandoning the redevelopment project made infamous in Kelo v. City of New London, New York’s highest Court refused to overturn lower courts’ decisions that the area surrounding Brooklyn’s Atlantic Yards project is blighted. Read the opinion here. Amid calls for eminent domain reform, the project will now move forward by selling bonds to fund... Read More
Taxpayer’s Challenge to Re-Assessment Out of Time
Bear’s Nest Condo. Ass’n v. Bergen County Bd. of Taxation, 2009 N.J. Tax LEXIS 26 (October 19, 2009) (Approved for Publication in New Jersey Tax Court Reports). In this matter, plaintiff, a condominium association, sued county tax board and borough, appealing the board’s approval of a re-assessment of all condominium units in the borough, including all... Read More
