Riverview Land Company,LLC
SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK
COUNTY OF DUTCHESS
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In the Matter of the Application of
4SSE:SECE:iV/EO
OFt'S
AU6 OFFICE
o I 2005
RNERVIEW LAND COMPANY, LLC.,
Petitioner,
II, - against -
Iii
The Assessor of the Town of Wappinger New York, the
I Board of Assessment Review of the Town of Wappinger,
I New York and the Town of Wappinger, New York,
i
NOTICE OF PETITION
Index No.:
20:.JS / 3b61
Respondents,
Date Filed:
For Review of the Assessment of Certain Real Property
in the Town of Wappinger, New York.
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SIRS:
PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that upon the petition of RIVERVIEW LAND COMPANY,
LLC., verified the 7th day of July, 2005, a copy of which is hereto annexed, an application will
be made at a Special Term, Part N of the Supreme Court to be held at the Dutchess County
Courthouse, Poughkeepsie, New York, on the 26th day of September, 2005, at 9:30 o'clock in
the forenoon of that day or as soon thereafter as counsel can be heard, for the review under
Article 7 of the Real Property Tax Law of the State of New York of the assessment for the year
2005 on certain real property of the petitioner situated in the Town of Wappinger, County of
Dutchess, State of New York, appearing upon the assessment roll for the year 2005, being the
real property particularly described in said petition, to the end that all proceedings, decisions and
actions in the matter of the assessment of said real property may be reviewed and the said
assessment corrected and modified on the merits by said Court, that the Court direct that the
assessment be rolled back to the original assessment at the time of the purchase by petitioner,
and for such other and further relief as to the Court may seem just and proper, together with legal
fees, witness fees, costs and disbursements of this proceeding.
DATED: July 7,2005
Yours, etc.,
/s/
John E. Watkins, Jr.
Attorney for Petitioner
175 Main Street
White Plains, New York 10601
(914) 428-1292
To: The Assessor of the Town of
Wappinger
The Board of Assessment Review
of the Town of Wappinger
The Town of Wappinger
SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK
COUNTY OF DUTCHESS
--------------------------------------------------------------------- )(
In the Matter of the Application of
RNERVIEW LAND COMPANY, LLC.,
Petitioner,
- against -
PETITION
The Assessor of the Town of Wappinger, New York, the
Board of Assessment Review of the Town of Wappinger,
New York and the Town of Wappinger, New York
20051 ~ bb, I
Respondents,
For Review of the Assessment of Certain Real Property
in the Town of Wappinger, New York.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------)(
The petition of RNERVIEW LAND COMPANY, LLC., by its attorney respectfully
shows:
1. Your petitioner's address is c/o John E. Watkins, Jr., 175 Main Street, White Plains,
New York, and petitioner is now, and was during all the times hereinafter mentioned, the owner
of, and/or person responsible for the payment of taxes on, certain real property situated in the
Town of Wappinger, New York, and further identified in Schedule A, Column 1, annexed
hereto.
2. The assessor of said municipality was and now is duly authorized by law to assess real
property in said municipality for state, county, town, school, and special district taxes including
the property of your petitioner herein referred to. The Board of Assessment Review of said
municipality was duly authorized by law to review the action of the said Assessor with respect to
complaints filed with them concerning assessments appearing on the assessment roll of the said
municipality for the year 2005 and to finally correct and revise any and all assessments on said
roll concerning which complaint was made to the said Assessor.
3. Upon information and belief, on or about the 1st day of January, 2005, the said
Assessor proceeded to assess the property in said municipality not exempt by law from taxation
and made, prepared and claimed to have completed the assessment roll of all real property in said
municipality for the year 2005. On or before May 1st, 2005, said Assessor deposited the roll in
his office and thereupon caused notice of completion of the roll to be published in the official
newspapers of said municipality and said notices contained a statement that the roll might be
seen and examined by any person from the 1st day of May.
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II 4. The description and assessment on said assessment roll of your petitioner's real I
II property situated in said municipality as the same appeared thereon after the completion thereof I
I as aforesaid is as set forth in Schedule A, Columns 1 and 2, annexed hereto. I
I 5. During the period and at the place specified in said notice for a hearing on said I
II assessments, your petitioner made application to have said assessment corrected and reduced and II'
II your petitioner did at said time duly file with said Assessor and the Board of Assessment Review
Ii an application, under oath, specifying the respects in which the assessment complained of was.
III incorrect and protesting against the same in accordance with the requirements of the Real
II Property Tax Law of the State of New York, and asking for a reduction of such assessment
against said real property and said statement was received by, and filed with, said Assessor and
Board of Assessment Review and the same was before them within the period appointed as II
aforesaid for the making of complaints. The said statements contained in said application thus
submitted to the said Assessor and Board of Assessment Review were then, and are now true, but
said Assessor and Board of Assessment Review refused and still refuse to correct said I
assessment to the full extent requested by petitioner. !
6. Upon information and belief, on or about the 1st day of July, 2005, there was
published and posted as required by law, a notice that the assessment roll of said municipality for
the year 2005 had been filed on or about the 1st day of July, 2005. That on or about the 1st day
I
of July, 2005, the assessment roll for the said municipality for the year 2005 was finally I
completed, verified and certified and the same was filed with the Clerk of said municipality on or I
about the 1st day of July, 2005.
7. The assessment of your petitioner's property upon said assessment roll is as set forth in
I
Schedule A, Column 2, annexed hereto. .
8. Upon information and belief, real property in said municipality is generally placed and
assessed on said assessment roll for the year 2005 at 40% of the full value thereof and the
respondents, in arriving at and fixing the several assessments appearing on said roll, generally
equalized the same at such percentum of the full value as determined by them, and in this
connection reference is hereby made to all the assessments appearing upon said roll.
9. Upon information and belief, the assessment of petitioner's said real property as
finally made as aforesaid, being the assessment thereof as it appears on said roll as finally
completed and filed as aforesaid, is illegal, unjust, excessive and erroneous for the following
reasons:
(a) Petitioner's said property is not assessed at a fair and proper rate of equalization
compared with assessments generally on said roll. In fact, a proper and fair assessment of said
property at the rate of 40% equalization at which property is generally assessed on such roll
would be as set forth in Schedule A, Column 3, annexed hereto.
(b) The assessment of petitioner's said property has been made at a higher proportionate
valuation than the assessment of other taxable real property of the same major type on said roll.
(c) Said assessment is void and illegal because all properties in the assessing district are
not assessed at the same percentage of full value as required by law.
(d) Said assessment is void and illegal because all classes of property in the assessing
district are not assessed at the same percentage of true value as required by law.
( e) Said assessment is void and illegal because the assessor has purported to re-assess
only certain properties on the assessment roll thereby creating unequal assessments.
1 O. Your petitioner is aggrieved and injured by the said excessive and unequal
assessment and is injured thereby in that if the same is permitted to remain, your petitioner will
be required to pay a greater portion of the taxes required to be raised in said municipality than it
would be required to pay if said assessment had been made correctly and properly.
11. Thirty (30) days have not elapsed since the final completion and filing of said
assessment roll and publication of notice of completion as required by law.
12. Annexed to this petition and made a part hereof is a written authorization authorizing
that this petition be signed and verified by an agent of petitioner designated therein.
13. No other application has been made to this or any other court for the relief asked for
herein.
WHEREFORE, your petitioner prays that said assessment roll be corrected and the
assessment against your petitioner's aforesaid real property be reduced to a proper amount and
properly equalized with the assessments of other real property on the same roll; that the Court
take evidence or cause the same to be taken to enable your petitioner to show the illegality,
inequality, overvaluation, and error of said assessment against petitioner's said real property; that
the Court direct that the assessment be rolled back to the original assessment at the time of the
purchase by petitioner; and that the petitioner have such other and further relief as may be just
and proper, together with the legal fees, witness fees, costs and disbursements of this proceeding.
DATED: July 7, 2005
John E. Watkins, Jr.,
Attorney for Petitioner
175 Main Street
White Plains, New York 10601
(914) 428-1292
3
II
.. i!
[i
II
II
II STATE OF NEW YORK
II
II
I
I
)
)ss.:
)
COUNTY OF WESTCHESTER
JOHN E. WATKINS, JR., being duly sworn, deposes and says:
That he is the duly authorized agent of the petitioner herein; that he has read the petition
and knows the contents thereof; that the same is true of his own knowledge, except as to those
matters therein stated to be alleged on information and belief, and as to those matters he believes
the same to be true; that the grounds of his belief as to all matters not stated upon knowledge are
books and records and investigations made.
/s/
JOHN E. WATKINS, JR.
Sworn to before me this
7th day of July, 2005.
/s/
Column 1
6056-01-174862-0000
Column 2
$536,000
SCHEDULE A
Column 3
$240,000
5
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17189012%7
AMERICAN FOREST PROD
. PAGE 02
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Authol1zation of Agent
Pursuant to Sections ofthe
Rea~ Propt:rty Tax Law
Itl';: llnderslgn"~d here))' apP0ints John SWatkin.s.k or any attul11ey Qn;.ploy~d by his
iinn :1" ::\gent and tluthoriZZ6 him to sign, ~x~cute: verify and .t1le allY and aJ: grievanci:
(l.PJ.'llC;4J.liqn~, pr()te~R3 and ,1\ ce1nptaints. to review the real property lax a,ssessmel1f vrJ property
c'\'\'ned by the imderslgui;:d and ide-lltifJed bdo\\' He is further authorized to veri fy any
i~'ditIOl1S tv (.or'JlT1e'KC a sp:cldl proceeding pursuant to Micle 7 01 Il;e Rea.l Property Ta::-:
L~"'^! ',vith respect to saId j)J'operty He is also lurther autbc,lrized to act as agent for the
ll\dersig~li'd. '~'i~h resp~Gt to all heaTmg~, conference.,; and meetings "'lith r~gard to tLis property
a:5 it app(~2.n on tbe tax roll indudj'Jg any prior pwceedings presently pending and any and all
f.uhseqnent years IlDtil such agef.cy and aulhoriz.al1on are revoked \11 wri.tiT\g.
:~v.~.w )C.?I~~___ ~___._
Ste_l;;1) Tllle:hm
l)rl:)lH~rty Identified As:
157 River Road N.
TlU Ht'sigll1ltion:
6056-01-1 ';4862-0000
MlllDkipaUty'
T c,iwn of Wappinger
Dlillted:
~J4iY 6, 2005