FIRST CHURCH OF THE NAZARENE, INC., ET AL
v.
TAX ASSESSOR, ET AL.
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First Church of the Nazarene challenged the tax assessor's valuation of property it leased to the American Welding Society. The court granted partial summary judgment, exempting the portion used by the Welding Society for scientific and literary purposes but denying exemption for the church's remainder interest, which was not actively used for religious purposes.
The Welding Society's leasehold interest is entitled to tax exemption for 1972 because it uses the property predominantly for scientific and literary purposes. However, the church's remainder interest is not entitled to exemption because it is not used for exempt religious purposes; merely pledging rental revenues as collateral for constructing a new building does not constitute use for an exempt purpose.
[1] Property leased to a scientific or literary society is entitled to ad valorem tax exemption for the period of the lease.
[2] A remainder interest in property previously used for religious purposes is not entitled to tax exemption if the rents are pledged for a new construction and not used for…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“Usage of such revenues to finance construction of a new building is equivalent to maintaining and paying off the old building.”
Establishes that pledging lease revenues for a new building does not constitute use for an exempt purpose
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceFirst Church of the Nazarene owned real property comprising its former house of worship. As of the tax year, the property was leased to the American W…
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This cause came on to be heard on plaintiffs’ motion for summary judgment.
The court finds from the pleadings and affidavits on file, that there is no genuine issue of material fact and that, as a matter of law, plaintiffs’ property is entitled to a partial exemption from ad valorem taxes for 1972.
Plaintiffs are seeking total exemption from ad valorem taxation for 1972. The subject real property is owned by the First Church of the Nazarene. It comprises the church’s former house of worship and underlying land. As of the taxing date, the subject property was leased to the American Welding Society, Inc.
The court finds, on the basis of the affidavit submitted by the Welding Society’s executive director, that the society uses its interest in the subject property predominantly for scientific and literary purposes. Such interest is therefore entitled to exemption from ad valorem taxes for the 1972 year.
The issue remains as to whether the church’s remainder interest in the subject property is entitled to exemption. Clearly this interest is not used for scientific or literary purposes. The church asserts that its interest is used for religious purposes. At the hearing, the church admitted that, as of the first of the tax year, it no longer held services on the premises or made any other physical use of the property. The rents accruing under the lease were pledged as collateral for a bank loan, the proceeds of which were used to defray construction costs of a new house of worship. Were the church to use these revenues for the operation, maintenance and repair of the subject property (its former house of worship) and to retire the indebtedness thereon, this would not constitute use for an exempt purpose. See Simpson v. Bohon, 31 So.2d 406 (Fla. 1947); State, ex rel. Cragor Company v. Doss, 8 So.2d 17 (Fla. 1942). Usage of such revenues to finance construction of a new building is equivalent to maintaining and paying off the old building. The court finds that the church’s predominant usage of the remainder interest in the' subject property is not for religious purposes and is therefore not entitled to tax exemption. The court further finds that the fair market value of the church’s remainder interest is $2,000.
*197It is therefore ordered and adjudged — (1) That the subject property is entitled to partial tax exemption as set forth above for the 1972 year. (2) That the taxable portion of the subject property (the church’s remainder interest) is valued for the purposes of ad valorem taxation for the year 1972 at $2,000. (3) That the Dade County Tax Collector shall recompute the 1972 taxes on the taxable portion of the subject property, using as the basis for his calculation the assessment as delineated above and shall furnish the plaintiffs with a corrected tax bill. If plaintiffs pay the taxes due within thirty days of the date of such corrected bill, they shall be entitled to the standard 4% discount. (4) That the injunction previously issued herein enjoining collection of taxes on the subject property is dissolved. (5) That each party shall bear its own costs. (6) That this court shall retain jurisdiction of this cause for the purpose of enforcing the provisions of this summary final judgment.
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Citator
Authorities Cited
- State v. Doss, 150 Fla. 491 (Fla. 1942)
- Simpson v. Bohon, 159 Fla. 280 (Fla. 1947)