The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1920-01-02


which sustained the Gloucester City
Board of Assessors on its assessment
of $4,000 on the plant The decision
is a blow to the city, AS it had figured
on the taxes replacing the revenue
which will be lost from saloon license
fees next year. 1t means that Glouces-
ters tax rate will have to be increased.
An appeal will be taken to the New
Jersey Supreme Court, as City Solic-
itor Letzgus Is of the opinion tina: the
city is entitled to collect the taxes. and
under the state law the assessors are
entitled to place an assessment on the
plant. He is upheld in this opinion by
the Camden County Board of Taxa
ton, which took the stand that If taxes
can be collected from the two shipyard
villages built by the government they
can be collected from the shipyard
The opinion of the state board COW
ers seven typewriter pages, and in
brief it sets forth that the shipyard
was financed with public funds by the
United States government through the
Shipping Board that the government
holds all but a few of the shares of
stock in the Shipping Board; that the
incorporators who hold the other
shares derive no benefit whatever from
their holdings, and that the shipyard
was built during a war emergency. 1t
also says that the government entered
into contract with the New York
Shipbuilding Corporation for the con-
struction and operation of the plant
and to build ships and that, as the
agent of the government, it cannot be
assessed for taxation.
The shipyard cost about 100000
and adjoins the main plant of the New
Yord shipyard When the assessment
was made for this year the buildings
were not half finished and the Glouces-
ter assessors placed an assessment of
S375,000 on the unfinished buildings
against the New York Shipbuilding
! Corporation as owner of the land, be-
cause, it was claimed, in New Jersey
all buildings must be assessed to the
owners of the land where there is nc
existing lease to the contrary and
100000 against the Shipping Board
| for machinery not yet installed.
The Shipping Board and New Jer-
sey Shipbuilding Corporation appealed
| to the Camden County Board of Taxa
| ton, which sustained the Gloucester
assessors. An appeal then was taken
to the state board and hearing was
held in Camden month ago A con
ference of the Gloucester officials viii
be held next Tuesday evening. at which
| time it will be decided whether an ap
peal will be taken to the Supreme
! Court The Gloucester assessors say
that before the assessment was placed
they consulted with the city solicitor
and the County Board of Taxation.
The Emergency Fleet Corporation
spent about S10,000O00 on laying gu
and constructing 1900 homes at York
ship village, in the lower end of Cam
den, for the workers at the CamdeI
100000 more on laying out and con
structing $50 homes at Noreg village
below Gloucester. The officials o
Gloucester City contend that If thes.
homes can be assessed there is no rea
son why the shipyard cannot be as
sessed, as the government furnishe,
the money for all the places. Tn
Shipping Board also constructed ney
buildings and ways at the main plan
of the New York shipyard, and the.
were assessed by the Camden Boar
of Assessors, but no appeal was takel
in Camden.
The officials of Gloucester say tina
the city is being Disseminated agains
by the officials in Washington, and thi
was the main reason that Glouceste
refused to annex Noreg village sew
eral months ago, as it was feared theI
that the homes could not be assessed
although a promise was made that n,
attempt would be made to prevent tax
alton. The homes at the two ship
yard villages cost on an average o
$4,000 each, and real estate men sa!
that they will not bring more thai
one-third of that amount when the.
are sold In the near future.
Broaden Publicity Lines.
Louis B. Blan, director of the Divi
sion of Records, Reports and Inforna
ton of the State Department of Insti
tutions and Agencies for two years, hal
resigned to go with a motion pictur,
corporation, and the department ha!
announced the appointment of John c
McEnroe, former newspaper man ant
now police commissioner of Newark
as his successor.
The dictatorship to which Mr. Mem
roe has been named is not a state pc
sition, but was established by the De
partment of Institutions and Agen
cies for its own publicity purposes
The salary is paid by members of the
board from their personal funds, anC
the expense to the state is only 81 {
year.
Mr.. Blan's work has been principal
ly that of preparing publicity for the
various institutions under control OF
the department Mr. McEnroe viii
undertake work of a somewhat broad
er character. He will assist in max
Jig the department of greater service
to local authorities, organizations anC
individuals.
New Jersey Lacks 1000 Teachers.
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