Plum Officials Waive Portion of Delinquent Taxes for Potential Property Buyer

In an effort to revitalize a vacant property in the borough, Plum Council has waived a portion of the property's delinquent taxes for a potential buyer.

On Monday, council voted 5-1 to collect only 20 percent—about $1,630—of the $8,152 worth of back taxes owed to the borough for the property at 120 Lynn Ann Drive. Councilman Keith Nowalk dissented. Councilwoman Christine Scardina-Gazzo was absent.

Plum resident Matt Palermo made an offer for 120 Lynn Ann Drive, which was demolished and now is vacant—it was acquired by a bank. Palermo said he and his wife are hoping to buy the property to build a home on it. However, when he learned about all the taxes owed to the school district and the borough, he offered to pay 20 percent of the amount in order to buy the property.

Councilman Leonard Szarmach said waiving a portion of the back taxes was the best thing to do rather than letting the land stay vacant. He said the borough would receive a viable tax on the property once Palermo owns it and builds a home on it.

Mayor Richard Hrivnak was completely opposed to the idea. He said several residents are going through a tough time with the state of the economy, and banks usually don't follow the practice of forgiving late payments on mortgages. He also said it might set a precedence.

"I guarantee dollars to doughnuts this won't be the last one we hear," he said.

Councilman Charles McMeekin said the house on the property had been in "deplorable condition" before it was taken over by the bank. The bank also paid to have the home demolished, something boroughs usually are financially responsible for.

Borough manager Mike Thomas said borough staff was instructed months ago to identify the top 10 properties in the borough to forgive taxes on in order to attract potential buyers.

"At the end of the day, we have an 11th property, and we don't have to do anything (because a buyer already is interested)," he said.

Palermo said if all works out as planned, he and his wife will begin planning to build a home on the property within the year.