2011 IL App (2d) 100068
Ill. App. Ct.2011Background
- Sanitary landfill property in Ogle County, Illinois, 159.54 acres of a 333.78-acre parcel; prior assessment $2,501,240, BOR increased to $8,633,000, PTAB later reduced to $3,321,000.
- Onyx Orchard Hills Landfill, Inc. owned and operated the landfill; asset divestiture order related to federal competition concerns affected sale context.
- PTAB adopted an appraisal framework excluding the sales-comparison approach; Onyx relied on cost and income approaches for fair market value as of January 1, 2003.
- School district (intervenor) asserted data omission under Omni; argued the burden to prove market value requires inclusion of the sales-comparison data.
- PTAB ultimately valued the property at $10,000,000 based on Main’s income-approach appraisal with Kelly’s cost approach lending support; school district and BOR appealed to the appellate court.
- Record included assessments and multiple expert appraisals (Kelly, Main, McCann, Pomykacz, Jones, McCann’s and Main’s data) with differing conclusions on valuation methodology.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether Onyx met its burden to challenge the assessment. | Onyx argues PTAB correctly allowed reliance on non-sales data due to lack of arm's-length data. | School district/BOR contend Omni requires sales data to be sufficient to challenge value. | Yes; PTAB properly allowed single-approach income/cost valuation where sales data were unreliable. |
| Whether excluding the sales-comparison approach was legally permissible. | Onyx reliance on cost/income approaches should be permitted when sales data are unreliable. | Omni requires sales data to support market-value determinations where available. | Yes; Omni permits exclusion where reliable market data are unavailable. |
| Whether Kelly's cost approach lent support to Main's income-approach valuation. | Endorsing cost approach lends corroboration to income-based value. | Cost approach is not necessary if income approach already supports value. | Yes; Kelly’s cost approach lent support to Main’s income-approach valuation. |
Key Cases Cited
- Omni v. Property Tax Appeal Board, 384 Ill.App.3d 472 (2008) (sets framework for burden and use of sales data when market data are unreliable)
- Chrysler Corp. v. Illinois Property Tax Appeal Board, 69 Ill.App.3d 207 (1979) (arm's-length sale sufficiency and valuation standards)
- Walsh v. Property Tax Appeal Board, 181 Ill.2d 228 (1998) (fair market value; arm's-length sale principle)
- United Airlines, Inc. v. Pappas, 348 Ill.App.3d 563 (2004) (sales-comparison applicability to leases/space valuation)
- Kendall County Board of Review v. Property Tax Appeal Board, 337 Ill.App.3d 735 (2003) (comparison of approaches when market data limited)
- Waste Management of Wisconsin, Inc. v. Kenosha County Board of Review, 516 N.W.2d 697 (1994) (income approach appropriate where market data unreliable; data corroboration)