The Appeals Court has ruled that the City of North Adams owes a plaintiff developer nothing – beyond a “nusiance” pro tanto payment of $10,000 – for an eminent domain taking of the developer’s private sewer system. In a “battle of experts,” the developer’s appraiser testified that the sewer system was worth $271,000, while the city’s appraiser opined that it had no value because (1) the developer had already recouped the cost of building the system by renting apartments in the building it was able to construct, and (2) the developer would actually benefit from the taking, since its property would continue to be served by the system but the developer would no longer be responsible for its maintenance. The Superior Court sided with the city’s appraiser and the Appeals Court affirmed.
North Adams Apartments LP v. City of North Adams (pdf), Appeals Court decision dated January 18, 2011.