Tuesday, July 02, 2013

Solberg Airport eminent domain fight in Readington still unresolved

Solberg-Hunterdon Airport (N51), Readington, New Jersey  

READINGTON — A Superior Court judge once again has grounded the township’s efforts to acquire Solberg-Hunterdon Airport.

The eminent domain battle — which already has cost township taxpayers more than $1.5 million in legal bills, as well as $22 million in borrowed money to finance a forced purchase of the property — continues after a judge on Monday threw out the township’s latest plan, essentially putting both parties back at square one.

Judge Yolanda Ciccone, sitting in Somerville, also ordered the township to return more than $139,000 that officials had withdrawn from the case’s trust account in order to pay the airport’s property taxes.

Ciccone also denied Readington’s effort to withdraw $700,000 from the account. The township argued that they should be allowed to recoup some of the money considering that their latest amended offer was $7.16 million cheaper.

The township originally had tried to acquire all of the airport’s 726 acres in 2006. An appellate panel in 2009, however, ordered a trial after finding the township’s motives “suspect.”

Officials long have feared that the airport would grow too large. The township wants to preserve the airport property as open space. The Solberg family, which has operated the commercial airport since 1941, oppose any taking of their property or development rights.

In 2011 the township revised its plan, opting instead to buy only the development rights of the airport “safety zone,” excluding the 102 acres that include the airport’s facilities, for a cost of $14.6 million.

Last year Ciccone ruled that Readington, by amending its plan, had unlawfully abandoned its original claim, meaning that the Solberg family was entitled to collect legal expenses from the township. In this week’s ruling, however, Ciccone said that Readington in fact cannot abandon its original claim without the Solbergs’ consent.

“It’s back to the status it was in before they tried to amend it,” Solberg attorney Laurence Orloff, of the firm Orloff, Lowenbach, Stifelman and Siegel, said Tuesday. Orloff said that he had not yet spoken with his clients regarding how they would proceed.

Township attorney James Rhatican could not be reached for comment Tuesday.


Source:  http://www.mycentraljersey.com

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