City again bills incorrectly on tax agreements
Two buildings were not charged approximately 280K
An audit requested by city officials has uncovered more billing deficiencies in regard to payment in lieu of tax [PILOT] agreements on downtown apartment buildings.
The city failed to properly bill close to $282,000 worth of property taxes on the Griffin and Post apartment buildings, according to city manager John “Jack” Kelly. The total amount of under billing discovered in PILOT programs to date is approximately $1 million.
The Griffin, located at the 510 Cookman Ave. and owned by Rumson-Fair Haven Bank and Trust Company, was underbilled about $42,000 and the Post building, located at 601 Mattison Ave. and owned by Sackman Enterprises, was underbilled about $240,000, Kelly said.
It is the third Sackman-owned building that has been incorrectly billed.
The city neglected to bill the developer for the payments on the Steinbach building and the 550 Cookman Avenue apartment apartment complex from 2009 until December of last year, which had by then amassed to about $700,000. Sackman paid the balance on the 550 Cookman Ave. apartment complex in February and is making payments on the Steinbach building.
While the tax collector’s office is responsible for calculating the bills, the current tax collector was not billing the properties properly as he was following the incorrect practices of his predecessor, Kelly said. Moving forward, Kelly believes staff members have been properly trained to bill the PILOTS accordingly and will be reviewing the bills himself prior to mailing.
Proper bills have been sent with a September 1 due date, Kelly said.
City auditor David Kaplan informed city council members Wednesday his office has finished their review of four of the city’s 14 PILOT agreements and will continue to work on the remaining 10.
The discussion sparked council members to suggest the city review its practices and possibly secure additional human resources to keep track of and bill the city’s in lieu of tax payment agreements.
Kaplan said he suggested to former City Manager Terence Reidy there should be someone who strictly handles the city’s PILOT agreements, especially since the growing city continues to attract developers and has the potential for several other agreements in the future.
Chief Municipal Finance Officer Richard Gartz told council members utilizing additional manpower to evaluate and track the agreements is a discussion he is up for having.
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