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Fairfield Board of Assessment Appeals hears multiple valuation appeals citing contamination, flood risk and demolition
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Summary
The Board of Assessment Appeals heard owners and their representatives on March 30, 2026, over a series of property valuation appeals in Fairfield. Testimony included contamination and EPA enforcement claims at 55 Rising Street, flood‑risk concerns at Fairfield Beach Road, and valuation workups for several commercial parcels; the board will deliberate and notify parties within seven days.
The Fairfield Board of Assessment Appeals held a hearing on March 30, 2026, during which property owners and their representatives presented testimony on a series of valuation appeals affecting coastal, commercial and special‑use parcels.
Peter DiNardo, a beneficial owner of Southyard LLC, asked the board to cut the town’s $249,000 valuation for 55 Rising Street to $225,000, saying the site ‘‘has no improvements’’ (it was demolished in 2002) and is burdened by long‑running environmental enforcement. ‘‘We spent in excess of $1,300,000 on testing alone and still don’t have an approved cleanup plan,’’ DiNardo said, adding that early EPA cleanup estimates ‘‘before the recent inflation was $40,000,000.’’ He said the site’s wetlands and flood‑zone exposure and the presence of PCBs ‘‘substantially outweigh any value’’ and offered to submit testing reports and correspondence with town conservation staff to the assessor’s office.
On a coastal valuation dispute, Peter DeNardo (self‑identified as a beneficial owner of the trust that holds 1883 Fairfield Beach Road) asked the board to lower the property’s valuation from $3,832,612 to $3,000,000. DeNardo said the house sits at an elevation that would not meet today’s flood standards, that a nearby family property was condemned after Sandy, and that insurance and maintenance costs are unusually high, which he said reduce marketability and sale price.
Several commercial appeals were presented by August Horning, who represented multiple owners and offered income‑approach analyses and comparable sales to support reduced values. For 136 Fairfield Woods Road, Horning used a market rental rate of $24 per square foot with a loaded cap rate that produced a $676,000 valuation estimate for a 5,049‑square‑foot office building. For 801 Post Road, he characterized a former auto‑service building as effectively vacant and in need of heavy rehabilitation and proposed a lower valuation of $343,000 based on local sales. Horning also presented income reconstructions for 400 Post Road, 95 Old Post Road (where he said the improvement portion had been demolished as of March 11, producing an adjusted parcel value near $977,528), 163 Oldfield Road, a daycare at 449 Grasmere Avenue, and 1596 Post Road (a retail building leased to Marathon Sports), citing rents, NOIs and cap‑rate workups and offering to provide full backup packets by email.
Throughout the hearing, Board representative Peter Rupert administered oaths and explained process and timing. Rupert said the Board is finishing hearings, will bring appeals to a majority for deliberation, and that parties would receive written notice of decisions within seven days. He also reminded appellants that if relief is granted they generally cannot refile until the next revaluation cycle, while a denied appellant may refile next year or appeal to Superior Court.
The Board did not issue immediate rulings at the session. Parties who offered backup (pro formas, sales comps, test reports and appraisals) were instructed to send their documents to the assessor’s office; Rupert said those materials will be included in the Board’s files for deliberation. The session adjourned at 5:53 p.m.
