HAMMONTON BLOG

Nearly every municipality in Atlantic County filed a joint lawsuit against Atlantic City earlier this month accusing city legislators of improperly approving a $34 million tax appeal settlement with Trump Entertainment.
The municipalities, led by the Atlantic County Mayors Association, hope to recoup more than $3 million in tax credits the settlement cost them collectively after the agreement was approved under heavy scrutiny in November 2007.
"We want restitution," said Buena Vista Township Mayor Chuck Chiarello, president of the mayors group. "These are difficult times ... and we need to send a message that if this comes up again, we can't act carelessly."
The lawsuit accuses Atlantic City of negligence, including claims the administration did not provide City Council with proper information to make an educated vote.
"The information presented to City Council during the closed-session meetings was inaccurate, incomplete and misleading," the suit reads.
The municipalities say Atlantic City's consultant, Pamela Brodowski, did not provide a "complete or legitimate appraisal" to legislators.
The Press of Atlantic City previously revealed the documents attached to the suit, which show Brodowski made two separate estimations as to the amount of the Trump tax refund. The first came in March 2007 and ranged between $1.65 million and $25.82 million. Four months later, after removing the city attorney assigned to the case, a new projection was provided ranging between $52 million and $67 million.
Executive session minutes show City Council was shown the latter estimate the night it approved the $34 million settlement. However, private-session minutes a month earlier show Brodowski did verbally discuss the first, cheaper projections.
Atlantic City Solicitor Robert Tarver did not return a call seeking comment Tuesday.
The municipalities also charge the city violated the Open Public Meetings Act when council first voted on the settlement in the private session.
Trump Entertainment is also named as a defendant in the lawsuit but is not accused of any specific wrongdoing.
The suit also accuses City Council President William Marsh, who served as acting mayor when the deal was approved, of voting for the settlement despite a conflict of interest. The municipalities claim Marsh, one of the settlement's biggest proponents, should not have voted on the measure because of his outstanding legal debt to the city for separate settlement money he received that was later ordered to be returned.
The suit does not list any statute relating to the alleged violation. Timothy Maguire, the association's attorney, did not return a call seeking comment.
Marsh was miffed at the accusation and said he was never advised by the city's attorneys of any possible conflict. He also reiterated his argument regarding the county's outrage over the increased tax costs.
"This case went on for a long time, a lot of people were paid a lot of money by the city over the years," he said. "They never helped us with any of those costs. We needed to put an end to it."
Under the settlement, the city agreed to give the Trump organization $12 million in cash for 2007 and then $4 million per year in tax credits from 2009 to 2011 and $5 million per year in credits for 2012 and 2013.
The county tried to start its own appeal, but in December, Tax Court Judge Joseph Small ruled that the county is a "pass-through" entity, not a taxing entity, and therefore was not able to intervene.
Each municipality in the county owes a proportional amount of the settlement, ranging from Egg Harbor Township's share of $466,672 to Corbin City's $5,490.
The only municipalities in the county that are not labeled as plaintiffs are the defendant, Atlantic City, and Hammonton, which does not participate in the mayors association. However, Chiarello said the Hammonton still would benefit if the suit were successful.
Despite complaints from the accusing municipalities, Atlantic City was hurt the most from the settlement. Arthur Bunting Jr., the city's budget consultant, has said the $34 million deal is a major contributor to the economic woes the resort is enduring.
Mayor Lorenzo Langford, who was not employed by the city when the settlement was made, has said Trump representatives attempted to settle the case during the mayor's first term in office for $10 million. However, Langford and his legal team concluded even that was too much.
Egg Harbor Township Deputy Mayor Stanley "Jake" Glassey said the Trump tax settlement needs further scrutiny, especially since the township's share could be a big financial hit to local taxpayers.
"Atlantic City doesn't stand alone. What happens there happens to the district," Glassey said. "I just hope this lawsuit moves on and lets the truth come out about it."
Staff writer Michelle Lee contributed to this report.
E-mail Michael Clark: Michael.Clark@pressofac.com

Tax credits owed
Below is a breakdown of the tax credits owed by each municipality as a result of Atlantic City's $34 million settlement with Trump Entertainment Resorts Inc.
Absecon$87,517
Atlantic City$1,985,616
Brigantine$393,473
Buena $28,019
Buena Vista Township$51,898
Corbin City$5,940
Egg Harbor City$29,013
Egg Harbor Township$466,672
Estell Manor City$18,470
Folsom$16,567
Galloway Township$344,881
Hamilton Township$233,898
Hammonton$131,821
Linwood$109,826
Longport$162,868
Margate$351,756
Mullica$53,134
Northfield$106,540
Pleasantville$106,075
Port Republic$13,509
Somers Point$136,778
Ventnor$243,847
Weymouth Township$11,975

This is the organization that Mayor DiDonato decided to pull Hammonton out of. One has to wonder what other ideas and opportunities we are missing out on. We are the only municipality in Atlantic County who does not belong to this organization and now we stand to receive a lot of money because of their hard work. They pulled together and kept costs down by splitting the costs among all of the municipalities.