Millersville University leases, but has not purchased, the former building at 42 N. Prince Street that was owned by the Pennsylvania Academy of Music prior to its foreclosure by Union National Community Bank (UNCB). State regulations require that Millersville obtain current appraisals prior to the purchase and the word on the street, but not confirmed, is that at least one came in at a small fraction of the price sought by the bank.
Moreover, when a representative of NewsLanc asked the County Assessment office representative “Would the property remain tax exempt for real estate purposes or, because the bank owns it now, should it be put back on the tax rolls?” the response was “It is exempt because it is a school.”
The Watchdog posed the following question to one of the leading real estate experts in the state: “Recently a bank foreclosed on a 501(c)3 music academy and leased the building to a state university. Would the property remain tax exempt for real estate purposes or, because the bank owns it now, should it be put back on the tax rolls?”
The response was: “In PA the property should be put back on the rolls because it is no longer owned by a purely public charity but by a profit making entity.”
So whether the former PAM building is worth over $20 million as the bank would have the state believe or only say $6 or $7 million which is more likely, the UNCB should be paying real estate taxes of at least $200,000 a year, even at the lower figures. The City and School District of Lancaster sure could use it!
No wonder the city has cash flow problems.
The county assessment office should check on all the privately owned buildings that are leased to some form of government. The assessors will find that taxes are paid on the full assessed value of said properties.
The federal government leases many of its building rather than owning them outright. This keeps the properties on the tax rolls.