On their webpage, The Residences at Willow Ridge touts themselves as the utopia of Allen Tp and Northampton. Promising "serene luxury," they claim that their 216 apartments (1BR and 2BR) "have been designed with spacious layouts and sophisticated features" like a gourmet kitchen. Amenities include a saltwater swimming pool, outdoor lounge and sun deck, a 24/7 fitness center, and a beautiful club-house. A 30-acre park surrounds this serene setting. In fact, The Residences think they are so special that they only shit about 1/3 as the rest of us. They feel so strongly that they filed a lawsuit about it, and when Judge Craig Dally had the nerve to rebuff them, they appealed to the Commonwealth Court. Alas, they have lost there as well. Speaking for a three-judge panel in a 16-page Opinion, Judge Michael Wojcik has concluded that there's just as much shit flowing from The Residences as from less-refined developments. Accordingly, he affirmed Judge Dally's ruling that a $654,000 sewer hook-up fee is legit.
During the planning stages, Allen Township decided to charge a flat tapping fee of $3,000 for each unit, whether it was one or two bedrooms. Willow Ridge paid $654,000 for 218 units in 2011, but had second thoughts later when it concluded it was only using about 1/3 of the sewage anticipated. It wanted a $432,000 refund.
In his Opinion, Judge Dally ruled that, under a state statute known as the Municipality Authorities Act, apartments can be treated just like other types of residential housing when determining the capacity required for sanitary sewer service. Though Willow Ridge claimed that it was overcharged, it failed to preserve that issue on appeal and waived it.
So Willow Ridge gets no money back.
You can read the Commonwealth Court's opinion
here.
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