Reval Lawsuit Dropped

N. Wildwood couple drops reval lawsuit
By TRUDI GILFILLIAN Staff Writer, (609) 463-6716
Press of Atlantic City
Published: Tuesday, June 27, 2006
Updated: Tuesday, June 27, 2006

NORTH WILDWOOD — Two city property owners have dropped their legal challenge to the city's recent revaluation.

In April, property owners Alexander and Margaret Schernecke, on behalf of the Wildwood Taxpayers Association, filed a lawsuit in state tax court charging that errors in the revaluation process led to “violations of the taxpayer's constitutional right to be taxed fairly and equitably under New Jersey law.”

The lawsuit claimed that the revaluation “resulted in grossly overvalued, inequitable and inconsistent valuations throughout the city.”

If the suit had been successful, it would have forced the city to complete an entirely new revaluation.

The suit named the city along with Tyler Technologies/CLT Division, which performed the revaluation, as well as the Cape May County Tax Board and the city's tax assessor.

On Monday, the city received written notification from the Schernecke's attorney, Philip J. Giannuario, that the lawsuit had been withdrawn.

The letter was dated June 23, the same day a judge was set to hear a number of motions filed by the city and others asking that the lawsuit be dismissed.

“In our estimation ... it was frivolous litigation,” City Solicitor William J. Kaufmann said Monday.

In court documents, Kaufmann asked Judge Joseph C. Small to dismiss the Schernecke's complaint for several reasons.

Kaufmann said the couple had failed to exhaust all of the administrative remedies open to them to challenge the new value placed on their property. Those options included appealing to the county tax board and then to the state.

In addition, Kaufmann said the Scherneckes had no standing to act on behalf of other property owners, 85 percent of whom did not file an individual appeal with the county tax board.

County Tax Administrator George R. Brown said 1,057 North Wildwood residents, or about 15 percent of the city's property owners, filed tax appeals.

The tax board has heard individual North Wildwood appeals since May and has several more to hear in July, Brown sid Monday.

Kaufmann also noted that the Scherneckes did not challenge the initial county order which required the city to conduct the revaluation in the first place.

Kaufmann also challenged the timeliness of the suit. He said notices of the new assessments were mailed Feb. 10 and property owners had 45 days to appeal, which would mean they had until March 27. The lawsuit was filed April 3.

Neither the Scherneckes or their attorney could be reached for comment Monday.

Before the revaluation, the entire city was valued at $794.9 million, and after the revaluation, the town is now said to be worth about $3 billion.

To e-mail Trudi Gilfillian at The Press:TGilfillian@pressofac.com