BERLIN — Atlantic General Hospital (AGH) and the town of Berlin have reached a settlement over stormwater fee requirements that spent months in dispute bouncing around the legal system.
The settlement will be a restructuring of the fees that the hospital pays to Berlin’s Stormwater Utility as well as a new annual grant between the town and AGH. All agree the resolution was amicable and the town at least hopes that the settlement represents the last of community pushback against the fledgling utility.
The initial lawsuit began when AGH balked at the amount of stormwater management fees the town leveled upon it. Noting that they are a non-profit hospital and already modern with their internal stormwater management practices, AGH took the issue to court this winter claiming that it was being charged approximately $9,000 in unjustified fees.
A settlement was finally reached in July that will set the hospital’s annual stormwater fee at $3,200 for the existing grounds. Should the hospital campus change the additions will be subject to a different fee structure.
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2 comments:
So, you forgot to drop the other shoe... you know, the one where the Town agreed to "donate" triple that amount back to the Hospital!
Never trust the MSM...
Consider the original "shoe" courtesy of democrats in the General Assembly...the "Rain Tax" is the legislation that empowered towns like Berlin to charge these outrageous fees on top of the Property Taxes already paid by the folks. After all, Property Taxes are the vehicle a town should utilize if it wishes to conduct storm water improvements, not add another tax upon its people and businesses. For many years, those developing property, including neighborhoods, had to address storm water management issues. This added a significant cost to construction and consumer prices in the end. Fast forward a few years and those same folks who already paid to address storm water are now going to be taxed significantly for something they already mitigated. Berlin is a high tax town and this amounts to a tax upon a tax...so, when you hear about the "Rain Tax", just remember, it is alive and well in many of our local communities courtesy of liberal-progressives at every level of government.
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