Judge Dismisses Lawsuit Against Town
RICHMOND - A Rhode Island Superior Court judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by the Preserve at Boulder Hills against the Richmond Town Council.
The lawsuit, filed last December, claimed that the Town’s “wrongful, tortious, discriminatory, arbitrary and capricious actions and omissions have substantially and unnecessarily driven up the cost of the Preserve’s development of its property, slowed down the regulatory approval process, stifled and/or interfered with The Preserve’s use of its property, caused the Preserve to lose a significant financing opportunity and continues to cause the Preserve to unnecessarily and detrimentally alter financing arrangements, conditions and terms.”
In its notice of claim to the Town Council, submitted nine months before the lawsuit was filed, John Tarantino, the Preserve’s lawyer, said that the Preserve was entitled to $100 million in damages. The notice also “reminds the Town of the statutory requirements that may be necessary to hold a Town Council meeting in accordance with § 45-15-6 to levy a tax to pay this demand or otherwise resolve this case.”
The decision by Superior Court Judge Richard Licht, filed on December 12, said the Preserve does not have the right to move forward to a trial because some of the Preserve’s claims were filed too late, and most of the claims in the lawsuit, even if they are true, are either too vague or not substantial enough to support the Preserve’s assertions that its rights have been violated. The judge also found, based on public documents, that some of the allegations in the lawsuit were not correct.
Development of the Preserve began in 2011 with the purchase of the 178-acre Boulder Hills Country Club. The development now encompasses more than 750 acres.
Concerning the Preserve’s allegation that the Town intentionally delayed development approvals, Judge Licht noted that state law sets deadlines for such approvals and there was no evidence the Town exceeded any of them. “Plaintiffs are asking this Court to require local officials to meet a developer's deadlines, and that is the province of the General Assembly, not the Superior Court. To allow Plaintiffs to succeed on this claim would essentially be putting all municipalities at the mercy of developers who come with their own deadlines,” the decision says.
In response to the argument that the Town overcharged the Preserve in application and review fees, Judge Licht found that the Town “acted pursuant to statutory authority and the local municipal regulations in the charging and collection of the application and peer review fees.”
James Marusak, Steven Sypole, and Per Vaage of Gidley, Sarli & Marusak represented the Town in the case. They were retained by the Town’s insurance carrier. Town Solicitor Karen Ellsworth declined to represent the Town because of the likelihood that she would have to testify on behalf of the Town in the case. She said Marusak, Sypole and Vaage did an exceptional job representing the Town. “It’s very difficult to get a case like this dismissed before trial,” she said. “Jim, Steve and Per worked extremely hard on this case and this decision is an outstanding achievement.”
Developer Paul Mihailides, the Preserve owner, referred a request for comment to his attorneys, Tarantino and Nicole Benjamin of Adler, Pollock & Sheehan. Tarantino said the Preserve plans to appeal the decision, and that he is confident that his client will prevail in the Supreme Court. “The Preserve believes this case has merit,” he said. “It wants an opportunity to have it heard by a jury and that’s the reason we are taking an appeal. We hope the Supreme Court agrees with us and we get a chance to have a jury decide whether the Town acted inappropriately.”
Ellsworth said she believes the Supreme Court will uphold the Superior Court decision.
Sunday December 18, 2022
Beaver River Valley Community Association
P.O. Box 10, Shannock, RI 02875
Email: beaverri...@gmail.com
Website: https://www.brvca.org