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Unreliable Testimony Dooms Taxpayer’s Appeal
Another New Jersey taxpayer recently saw its property tax assessment affirmed by the New Jersey Tax Court due to a failure to present evidence to overcome the presumption of validity given to the municipal assessment. 90 Riverdale, L.L.C. challenged its 2009, 2010 and 2011 property tax assessments of its property located in the Borough of... Read More
N.J. Supreme Court Opines on Prior Public Use Doctrine in Railroad Case
On August 6, 2013, the New Jersey Supreme Court issued its opinion in Norfolk Southern Railway Co. v. Intermodal Properties (available here). The Court’s opinion was limited to analysis of two narrow issues; 1) whether the proposed use is incompatible with the public interest; and 2) whether the term “exigencies of business” limited the railroad... Read More
Property Owner is Injured But Has No Remedy at Law
Berardi I (Tp of Pemberton v. Berardi, 378 N.J. Super 430 (App. Div. 2005)). On September 30, 2002, the Township of Pemberton commenced a condemnation action to acquire property owned by the Berardis within a designated redevelopment zone in the municipality. Contemporaneous with the commencement of the action, the Berardis filed an applications with the... Read More
Valuing contaminated properties – “in use” or ”not in use”, that is the question. . . .
In Orient Way Corp. v. Township of Lyndhurst, the New Jersey Tax Court was confronted with the issue of valuation for local property tax purposes real property impacted by environmental contamination. This matter involved tax appeals for 2006 through 2008 on an old industrial property where the issue of contamination was undisputed. Also, undisputed was... Read More
Property Owner's Challenge to Montclair Redevelopment Plan Denied
On July 26, 2013, the Appellate Division issued an unpublished opinion in Grabowsky v Township of Montclair. In May 2012, the Township adopted an ordinance amending a redevelopment plan to permit an assisted-living facility on the Church Street site. Grabowsky filed an action challenging the ordinance adoption, which was rejected by the Law Division in... Read More
Atlantic City Revel Hotel and Casino Redevelopment Keeps Residents Moving
The Casino Reinvestment Development Authority has been slowly acquiring private property through exercise of eminent domain to “redevelop” the areas near the year-old Revel Hotel and Casino. According to a recent article by the Standard Times Go San Angelo, the redevelopment has progressed slowly because revenue from the Revel was supposed to fund a $50... Read More
Karan and Dune Replenishment: Where Do We Go From Here?
Last week, the New Jersey Supreme Court threw its hat into the ring in the controversy between New Jersey’s municipalities and beachfront property owners regarding the construction or replenishment of sand dunes to protect the shore from future storms. This dispute has been going on for years, but has become front page news since Superstorm... Read More
Bergen County Hospital: Exemption Safe or on Thin Ice?
A recent opinion by New Jersey Tax Court Judge Christine Nugent concluded that a long-time Bergen County hospital could remain exempt from local property taxation, but directed further proceedings to determine if the exemption would, in fact stand. The hospital, formerly known as the Bergen Pines County Hospital in Paramus, has been operated by a... Read More
“Faulty” Highest and Best Use Analysis Dooms Tax Appeal
In a recently published opinion, the New Jersey Tax Court reminded appraisers of the importance of the highest and best use analysis. The case, Clemente v. South Hackensack, involved a challenge to the property tax assessment for tax years 2009, 2010 and 2011 on a building which houses the Clemente Italian Bakery & Deli, a... Read More
Appellate Court: Contract Purchasers Have Standing to File Tax Appeal
The New Jersey Appellate Division reversed a Tax Court judge’s decision to dismiss a contract purchaser’s tax appeal because the purchaser was not the owner of the subject property at the time the appeal was filed. The property was under a contract of sale in December 2011 with an expected closing date of February 2012. ... Read More
