New Britain

by Julie Weisberg - January 29, 2003

After years of bickering and legal wrangling, the Town of Berlin and the City of New Britain have finally settled their disagreements over several municipal taxation issues.

Mayor Paul Argazzi said the agreement resolves “five major issues and three pending lawsuits” between the two neighboring towns, many of which began as far back as the late 1990’s.

“Rather than wait years and years for this to be resolved in the courts, we felt it was best to resolve the issues now and get some money coming back into the (Berlin) community,” Argazzi said.

Before the agreement can become official, however, it must be approved by both the Town Council and the New Britain Common Council.

Argazzi and New Britain Mayor Lucian Pawlak announced the agreement during a joint press conference on Jan. 21, held at New Britain Stadium -- one of the major properties involved in the dispute.

The stadium, home to the AA-minor league baseball team the New Britain Rock Cats, is owned and operated by the city but a portion of the property lies in Berlin.

Under state statute, municipalities are generally exempt from paying taxes on public property.

However, Berlin officials added the stadium to the town’s grand list in October 1998 after ruling that the revenue generated for New Britain was cause for an exception.

After unsuccessfully appealing the taxation decision with the town, New Britain filed two stadium-related lawsuits in state Superior Court.

According to last week’s agreement, beginning July 1, New Britain will make $30,000 payments in lieu of taxes for the next 11 fiscal years. In return, Berlin will waive $695,457 in total taxes, interest and fees the town has billed New Britain for the stadium since the 1998 grand list.

Negotiations regarding the stadium will reopen between the two towns again with the grand list of 2013.

“This wipes the slate clean,” Pawlak said. “And for at least another 11 years this issue will never come up again.”

In addition to the payments, the Rock Cats have agreed to host an annual “Berlin Day” at the stadium each season to honor the town’s Little League program.

And, two Berlin residents will be added to the committee that oversees the stadium’s fireworks displays.

“Berlin sees this as a regional facility that benefits both New Britain and Berlin,” Argazzi said. “I really enjoyed working with him (Pawlak) on resolving these issues, and I think that he is a man who cares about this community.”

The agreement also settles the issue of taxation on New Britain-owned watershed property in Berlin.

According to state statute, New Britain watershed land could not be taxed by Berlin as long as the city provided its Berlin customers water at the same price as its New Britain residents.

But Argazzi said two years ago, the city began adding a surcharge to Berlin water bills to help pay for its new water filtration plant. The town, therefore, began to tax the watershed land.

However, the Kensington Fire District – which makes up 51 percent of the city’s customer base in Berlin -- entered into a long-term contract requiring New Britain to supply water to the district’s customers at the same rate as its own residents.

The agreement now calls for all New Britain-owned watershed property in Berlin to be taxed at 49 percent of assessed value, which accounts for the remaining Berlin residents who do not receive the reduced water rate.

Previously, New Britain’s 2001 tax bill for the watershed land was $56,362. However, the agreement has since reduced the amount to $27,617, giving the city a $28,744 tax credit.

The credit will be applied to taxes due on the 2002 grand list and subsequent lists if necessary.

Smaller items included in the agreement include the town signing a three-year lease with New Britain for the rental of One Liberty Square, which will be used to house the Berlin Probate Court.

New Britain has agreed to wait its claim of $78,864 in tipping fees Berlin owes the city for use of its landfill on Deming Road. Although the Town of Berlin will be allowed to use the landfill free of charge, individual residents will continue to be assessed a fee for its use.

Also, New Britain will donate a 3.89 acre parcel of property located between High Road and Chamberlain Highway to the town as open space.

And the town will have the right of first refusal in connection with the sale of any property owned by New Britain and located in Berlin.

“This is a good way to start off a very difficult fiscal year for both communities,” Pawlak said, referring to the municipal revenue losses that will occur as a result of the state budget deficit. “Nothing is insurmountable, and I give Mayor Argazzi a lot of credit. The key now is to get our councils’ approval.”