UPDATE: FORMATION OF THE PHILADELPHIA LAND BANK
June 24 2014
In January of 2014, Mayor Nutter predicted that it could take a year for the City to organize its Land Bank, which had been approved by a December 13, 2013 ordinance. His prediction is proving accurate. The Land Bank is now scheduled for full implementation by ‘early’ 2015.
Continue ReadingAttorney Paul J. Toner of Orphanides & Toner, LLP, Advances Client’s Position with a Superior Court Decision Ruling that Planned Communities Developed Without a Homeowners Association Could Not Be Forcibly Reorganized into a Planned Community Governed by a Modern Homeowners Association
June 16 2014
On May 1, 2014, the Superior Court of Pennsylvania issued a decision that upheld the legal structure of a private planned community and ruled that a newly formed association of lot owners could not be recognized as a mandatory unit owners association.
Continue ReadingCommonwealth Court Deems Property Tax Rebate Rule Invalid under State and Federal Constitutions
April 25 2014
On March 14, 2014, the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania invalidated a requirement in the Senior Citizens Property Tax and Rent Rebate Assistance Act that had prohibited the estate of a deceased senior citizen from applying for a tax rebate where the decedent did not live into the succeeding calendar year. In C. Muscarella, Executor of the Estate of J. Carbo, __ A.3d __ (Pa.Cmwlth.2014), the Commonwealth Court held that the requirement violates the Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses of the state and federal Constitutions.
Continue ReadingAttorney Paul J. Toner to be a Featured Speaker at NBI Seminar - Local Government Law: What Attorneys Need to Know
April 25 2014
On November 6, 2014, Paul J. Toner, Esquire, will be a featured speaker at a seminar hosted by the National Business Institute (NBI) on the topics of Governmental Immunity and Access to Public Record.
Continue ReadingZONING LAW UPDATE: Commonwealth Court Rules that a “Methadone Clinic” is a type of “Medical Center” as Defined by the Philadelphia Zoning Code
April 11 2014
On March 6, 2014, the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania issued a binding decision in THW Group, LLC v. ZBA and City of Philadelphia, __ A.3d __ (Pa.Cmwlth.2014), which construed the term “Hospital/Medical Center” as defined in Section 14-102(62) of the Philadelphia Zoning Code to include methadone clinics.
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