Lesley Wright
The Arizona Republic
Mar. 7, 2008 05:19 PM SCOTTSDALE – The Arizona Court of Appeals found this week that Scottsdale may have undervalued land for its McDowell Sonoran Preserve in a condemnation case that could cost the city millions.
At issue is the date Scottsdale used to determine the value 50 acres of land near 122nd Street and Rio Verde Drive.
The ruling comes less than two months after Scottsdale was handed an $82 million judgment in the Toll Brothers condemnation case, involving 383 acres the city wants for the preserve near Bell Road and Thompson Peak Parkway. Scottsdale is hoping for a new trial in that case. The appeals court Thursday ordered a new trial for the 50-acre condemnation case that began in January 2003. The city did not take possession of the land until May 2004.
Scottsdale and landowner CGP-Aberdeen agreed that the 50 acres was suitable for “high-end residential development.”
Scottsdale found the value of the land to be $4 million in 2003.
CGP-Aberdeen said the city should have appraised the land at the date of “taking” in 2004, since land prices had skyrocketed in the interim.
The high court said a new trial court should determine which date should apply.
CGP-Aberdeen attorney Dale Zeitlin said the client had not reappraised the land for the later value date, but said the cost would be “in the multiple millions.”
“They took advantage of this client,” said Zeitlin, who also represented Toll Brothers. “It was outrageous.”
Scottsdale Assistant City Attorney Bruce Washburn said the appellate ruling will give the city an opportunity to go back into court and argue again that the value should have been determined on the earlier date.
