People ex rel. Ward v. Feitner — 61 A.D. 456

Majority

p. 456

The People of the State of New York ex rel. Jessie L. Ward and Anna L. Judson, Respondents, v. Thomas L. Feitner and Others, as Commissioners of Taxes and Assessments of the City of New York, Appellants.

Headnote

Assessment for taxation — an excessive valuation involves inequality — areductionin gross of several separate assessments on a number of lots is proper.

The fact that a parcel of real estate is .assessed for the. purposes of taxation át a. figure very largely in excess of its full value necessarily involves inequality. It will not he assumed that the assessment generally is above the actual value of the property assessed.

Where a tract of unimproved real estate, fronting on the Atlantic ocean in the former village of Rockaway, is divided into lots on the tax maps of the city of New York, and each lot is assessed separately, the court, on an application to-review the assessment, may reduce it in gross instead of hy separate lots.-

Appeal by the defendants, Thomas L. Feitner and others, as commissioners of taxes and assessments of the city of New York, from. • an order of the Supreme Court, made at the Queens County Special. Term and entered in the office of the clerk of the county of Queens-on the 5th day of November, 1900, confirming the report of a referee and correcting and reducing an assessment upon the real property of the relators for the year 1899.

George S. Coleman, for the appellants.

George G. Reynolds, for the respondents.

The relators complain of an assessment on two certain tracts of unimproved real estate fronting on the Atlantic ocean, in the-former village of Eockaway. This property had been assessed before the formation of the Greater New York, in 1897, at a valuation of $22,500. In the assessment roll for 1899 it was assessed at-a valuation of $208,900. The relators protested against this assessment and procured from the commissioners a reduction of $45,000. Deeming the sum of $168,900 as still excessive and unequal/ they sued out a writ of certiorari to review the assessment under section 250 of the Tax Law (Laws of 1896, chap. 908), and on the coming

p. 457

in and confirmation of a referee’s report have procured a reduction to the sum of $67,500.

The record is voluminous, but the points presented on the appeal are few. We find sufficient evidence to justify the findings of the referee and of the court at Special Term to the effect that the valuation as assessed was both excessive and unequal. As to the question of inequality it may be said that in addition to the direct evidence upon that subject bearing upon the ratio of assessment adopted in the various boroughs of the city, the fact of an assessment of real estate at a figure very largely in excess of its full value necessarily involves inequality. It cannot be assumed that assessments generally have been made far beyond the utmost market value of the property under the most advantageous conditions, and when such an one is established it follows that the proportionate rate must have been exceeded.

The property was divided into lots on the city tax maps, made pursuant to section 891 of the charter (Laws of 1897,' chap. 378), and the assessment complained of was made against each lot separately. The reduction was made by the court in gross instead of by separate parcels, and it is claimed on behalf of the appellants that this action was illegal and beyond the power of the court. It may be conceded that these maps should be followed in proceedings of this character, if for no other purpose than to avoid confusion, yet we think the court was not compelled under the circumstances of this case to adopt and adhere to the entirely arbitrary divisions which the department of taxes and assessments had established for the relators’ tracts of land. It was apparently difficult, if not quite impossible, to ascertain from the evidence a basis of value on the fictitious theory that the wild beach land in question existed as city lots, and in estimating its value in the form in which it is held by the owners the court adopted a practical method against which no valid legal objection can be urged.

The order should be affirmed;

All concurred, Goodrich, P. J., in result; Jerks, J., not sitting.

Order affirmed, with ten dollars costs and disbursements.