The Boston Archdiocese must reveal its plans for the property of a parish closed five years ago under a massive reconfiguration effort if it intends to forgo paying a six-figure real-estate tax bill, a Massachusetts judge said.Superior Court Judge Paul E. Troy Sept. 28 denied a request by archdiocesan officials, who claimed the archdiocese did not have to detail whether it planned to sell the former St. Frances Xavier Cabrini Parish in Scituate so it can maintain the tax-exempt status of the property.
"The judge rejected the argument by the archdiocese that they are exempt by the fact of who they are," explained attorney Jason Talerman, special town counsel, who was hired to handle the case for Scituate.
The 30-acre seafront property, valued at $3.3 million and located an hour south of Boston, has been the site of a five-year vigil by former parishioners who became angry when Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley announced in October 2004 the church would be one of 65 to close, or be suppressed in church parlance.
Numbering up to 300, the parishioners occupying the church were holding out hope that an appeal before the Vatican's Supreme Court of the Apostolic Signature will be resolved in their favor and Cardinal O'Malley's decision will be overturned.
The archdiocese maintained in an earlier court filing that revealing its plans for the property would be an invasion by the government into church affairs. Troy disagreed, writing that the town wants to know of the archdiocese's plans for the property so it can determine if the property tax should continue to be assessed.
"The objective factor determining whether the parish property qualifies for the property tax exemption allowed ... is whether the Roman Catholic archbishop intends to sell the parish property. This inquiry does not require the court to delve into the internal affairs of the Roman Catholic archdiocese," Troy ruled.
Scituate officials started billing the archdiocese during its 2006 fiscal year for property taxes covering 2005. A similar assessment was made the next fiscal year. The archdiocese paid both property tax bills.
Terrence Donilon, archdiocesan secretary for communications, told Catholic News Service in an e-mail message that the archdiocese believes the property should remain tax-exempt.
"The court ruled on one particular motion," he said. "This is not a disposition of the case. Therefore, we will continue to articulate our position on the broader issue at hand.
"We are consulting with our attorneys to determine the next step in proceeding with this case," he added.
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