Entenmann's Inc. v. Totowa Borough

19 N.J. Tax 505
CourtNew Jersey Tax Court
DecidedMay 29, 2001
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 19 N.J. Tax 505 (Entenmann's Inc. v. Totowa Borough) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New Jersey Tax Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Entenmann's Inc. v. Totowa Borough, 19 N.J. Tax 505 (N.J. Super. Ct. 2001).

Opinion

KUSKIN, J.T.C.

Plaintiff has moved for relief under the Freeze Act, N.J.S.A. 54:51A-8, for tax years 2000 and 2001 on the basis of a judgment entered by this court for tax year 1999. Entenmann’s Inc. v. Totowa Bor., 18 N.J.Tax 540 (Tax 2000). Defendant opposes the motion on two grounds: 1) as of the relevant assessing dates for the freeze years, the highest and best use of the subject property changed; and 2) with respect to tax year 2001, application of the Freeze Act is precluded by reason of an added assessment placed on the property during the year 2000. For the reasons set forth below, I grant plaintiffs motion.

The factual background to this matter is neither lengthy nor complex. After a trial of plaintiffs appeal of the 1999 property tax assessment on its property in Totowa (the 1998 assessment was also included in the appeal but is not relevant to this opinion), this court reduced the assessment from $11,374,000 to $7,762,700. Entenmann’s Inc., supra, 18 N.J.Tax at 564. The judgment reflecting the reduction was issued on March 17, 2000. For tax year 2000, the regular assessment on the subject property was $11,374,000, and, on October 1, 2000, the tax assessor placed an eight-month added assessment on the property. The full amount of the added assessment was $600,000, and the prorated amount for eight months was $400,000. The added assessment was based on “alterations” at the property completed during April 2000. [509]*509Plaintiff did not appeal the added assessment. For tax year 2001, the regular assessment was $11,974,000.

I

Does A Change In Highest And Best Use Constitute A Change In Value Under the Freeze Act

The statute governing plaintiffs application is N.J.S.A. 54:51A-8, as amended by L. 1999, c. 208, § 16, effective September 17, 1999, which provides as follows:

Where a judgment not subject to further appeal has been rendered by the Tax Court involving real property, the judgment shall be conclusive and binding upon the municipal assessor and the taxing district, parties to the proceeding, for the assessment year and for the 2 assessment years succeeding the assessment year covered by the final judgment, except as to changes in the value of the property occurring after the assessment date. The conclusive and binding effect of the judgment shall terminate with the tax year immediately preceding the year in which a program for a complete revaluation or complete reassessment of all real property within Ihe district has been put into effect. If as of October 1 of the pretax year, the property in question has been the subject of an addition qualifying as an added assessment, a condominium or cooperative conversion, a .subdivision or a zoning change, the conclusive and binding effect of such judgment shall terminate with said pretax year.

Defendant contends that plaintiff is not entitled to relief under this statute for 2000 and 2001 because, as of the assessing dates applicable to those years, October 1, 1999 and October 1, 2000, respectively, the highest and best use of the subject property changed. In support of this contention, defendant submitted the Certification of its appraisal expert, William H. Steinhart, who testified at the trial of the 1999 appeal. In his Certification, Mr. Steinhart notes that, in the appraisal report he submitted in connection with the 1999 appeal, he indicated that a change in highest and best use was anticipated as a result of demolition of a portion of the subject building, which took place in 1999 pursuant to a building permit issued on June 14, 1999. He concludes that, if he were appraising the property for 2000-2001, he would opine to a highest and best use different from that selected in his appraisal report for 1999. The paragraphs of his Certification discussing the change in highest and best use and its impact on the property read in their entirety as follows:

[510]*5106. If I were to perform an appraisal report for the subject property with regard to the 2000 and 2001 lax years, I would opine a highest and best use which is different from that highest and best use I selected in my appraisal report relating to the 1998 and 1999 tax years. The highest and best use of the subject property changed during the course of the 1999 tax year from general industrial use to office/flex use. See Exhibit A [(which consists of two pages from Mr. Steinhart’s 1999 appraisal containing a discussion of highest and best use)]. Plaintiffs demolition altered my opinion of the highest and best use of the property through the actions I described in Exhibit A | (namely, obtaining site plan approval for conversion from industrial to flex space, obtaining a demolition permit, and performing the demolition)]. This change in highest and best use occurred prior to the assessing date of the 2000 tax year and after the assessing date for the 1999 tax year. To determine the nature of the change in value resulting from plaintiffs’ actions, I would gather data which are different from those I selected for my analysis of the 1999 tax year because those data were for a different highest and best use and are therefore not entirely relevant to an analysis of the 2000 tax year.
7. I would conduct the remainder of my analysis partially based upon information which came into evidence at the trial of the 1998 and 1999 matters. Specifically, the information relating to the cost to actually put the property into a physical condition to support office/flex tenants was such that the only remaining significant piece of the analysis I would need to secure would be accurate comparable rentals for such office/flex space. In that regard, I would need to review the lease on the subject property which, I have reason to believe, was entered into once the space was redeveloped. I would also search the market for office/flex data, which data would be very different from the data I selected to utilize in the 1998 and 1999 tax years.
[Certification of William H. Steinhart, May 3, 2001.]

Defendant moved for production of the lease described by Mr. Steinhart, which was entered into after October 1, 2000. Based on the following analysis, I deny the motion.

The Steinhart Certification is the only factual support submitted by defendant for its contention that it is entitled to a hearing to determine whether application of the Freeze Act is precluded by a change in value of the subject property occurring between October 1, 1998, the assessing date for the 1999 base year, and October 1, 1999 and October 1, 2000, the respective assessing dates for the freeze years. The change in value which defendant would be required to establish at a hearing has been described as follows:

[I]n order for a taxing district to defeat the two-year freeze mandated by the Freeze Act by an allegation of change in value, ... the taxing district must first demonstrate that the alleged change is the result of either an internal or an external change occurring after the base-year assessing date which substantially and meaningfully increased the property’s value. A presentation that the subject [511]*511property’s alleged increased value is the result solely of general inflationary trends .. fails to meet this test.
[Cumberland Arms Assocs. v. Burlington Tp., 10 N.J.Tax 255, 272 (Tax 1988) (emphasis omitted).]

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Bluebook (online)
19 N.J. Tax 505, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/entenmanns-inc-v-totowa-borough-njtaxct-2001.