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Residents press Hyde Park board over $1.5 million tax certiorari request; board authorizes counsel to negotiate
Summary
Multiple residents raised transparency concerns about a proposed tax certiorari settlement that they said could shift $1.5 million in assessment effects to other taxpayers; the board authorized its attorney to negotiate a settlement with North Cross LLC by roll call vote.
Carol Pickering of Hudson View Terrace urged the town board not to approve what she described as a 25% tax certiorari request that would translate into a $1.5 million assessment change for a single landowner, saying an amendment that stated the amount was not available until she arrived at the meeting and calling the late addition 'not a very transparent way to do business.'
A town attorney explained that a 'certiorari' (Article 7) proceeding challenges an assessment and that outcomes typically adjust a property's assessment — not necessarily the taxpayer's immediate tax liability — and that settlements sometimes include waivers of refunds to reduce fiscal impacts on the town. The attorney warned litigation costs can range into the tens of thousands of dollars and described the assessor's role in the process.
After public comment and legal explanation, the board voted on Resolution 07-13-3 authorizing the town to permit attorney Kyle W. Barnett, Esq., of Vanderwater & Vanderwater LLP to negotiate a settlement in the Article 7 proceedings filed by North Cross LLC. The motion passed by roll call (recorded 'aye' by the board). The clerk recorded a unanimous vote in favor.
Board members did not debate the settlement terms in public at length; the authorization to negotiate permits the town's counsel to pursue a negotiated resolution subject to later board review and a formal settlement document. Residents who spoke asked the board to publish the consent judgment or settlement terms and to provide clearer, more accessible explanations when such matters appear on the agenda.
The board's legal counsel said staff will provide the related appraisal or settlement documents when available and that residents can request records under the town's FOIL procedures.
