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Fetzer v. Town Board of Aurora

270 A.D.2d 804 Court N.Y. App. Div. Decision date 2000-03-29 English

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p. 804
In the Matter of Todd J. Fetzer et al., Petitioners-Plaintiffs, and Timothy R. Ray et al., Appellants, v Town Board of the Town of Aurora et al., Respondents.
[705 NYS2d 147]

—Judgment unanimously reversed on the law with costs, motion denied and petition/complaint reinstated. Memorandum: This combined CPLR article 78 proceeding and declaratory judgment action was commenced by, among others, appellants (petitioners/plaintiffs), who are four individuals who reside in the Town of Aurora (Town), and two entities that own nursing homes/retirement communities, one situated within the Town and one in an adjoining town. The proceeding challenges the determination of respondent/defendant Town Assessor granting a tax exemption under RPTL 420-a and 420-b with regard to property within the Town owned by respondent/ defendant Presbyterian Homes of Western New York, Inc. (Homes) on which Homes is constructing a retirement community/transitional care facility and, eventually, a skilled nursing facility. The proceeding also challenges the action of respondent/defendant Town Board of the Town of Aurora (Town Board) in entering into a PILOT (Payments in Lieu of Taxes) agreement with Homes. The appeal is from a judgment granting the motion of respondents/defendants for summary judgment dismissing the petition/complaint in its entirety, presumably on the ground that petitioners/plaintiffs lack standing to challenge the granting of a real property tax exemption to another taxpayer.

Taxpayers in a community have standing to challenge a determination that a property within the community’s borders is exempted from the tax rolls (see, Matter of Colella v Board of Assessors, 266 AD2d 286 ; Fallica v Town of Brookhaven, 69 AD2d 579 , mod on other grounds 52 NY2d 794 ; Matter of Dubhs

p. 805
v Board of Assessment Review, 46 AD2d 651 ; see also, People ex rel. Hoesterey, 210 App Div 196 , 199-201, revd on other grounds 239 NY 626 ). “The decrease in the tax base that occurs when a property is improperly exempted from taxation has been found to constitute a cognizable injury to such taxpayers” (Matter of Colella v Board of Assessors, supra, at 287 ). Such a result is consistent with the “more recent trend of liberalizing the ability of taxpayers to challenge governmental action” (Matter of Dudley v Kerwick, 52 NY2d 542 , 551, rearg denied 54 NY2d 626 ). Thus, the court erred when it concluded that petitioners/ plaintiffs did not have standing to challenge the tax exemption granted to Homes. Therefore, the judgment is reversed, respondents/defendants’ motion is denied and the petition/ complaint is reinstated. (Appeal from Judgment of Supreme Court, Erie County, Mintz, J. — CPLR art 78.) Present — Green, A. P. J., Pine, Pigott, Jr., and Scudder, JJ.

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