Westchester County filed a lawsuit against the city of Rye, another grenade launched in the battle between the county and the municipality over taxes related to Playland Amusement Park.
The county is seeking $14 million from the city, which, according to the suit filed in early September, is how much tax revenue Rye has collected on behalf of the county and not turned over. In addition, the county claims the city owes $840,000 in penalties for late payment.
The city, for its part, says it would be happy to turn over the money, minus about $3 million that Playland owes the city in taxes.
Since Playland was taken over in 2022 by Standard Amusements, the park’s private operator, the city contends the park owes taxes to Rye on the property. For all its years as a county-run amusement park, Playland was tax exempt.
The city argues that police, fire, and EMS services for Playland are costly, and should be funded through taxes collected on the Playland property. Rye sent Standard Amusements a tax bill, but the company did not pay. Rye sued Standard Amusements for the payment, and lost in the lower court, when the judge ruled that the land should remain tax exempt because it is used by a wide swath of the public.
Rye is appealing that ruling.
In the meantime, the city wants to pay $10 million of the taxes it has collected for the county, holding back $3 million to cover its tax bill sent to Playland, but not paid while the case works its way through the appeals process.
“The latest suit by the county is disappointing as the city has twice tendered payment to the county its share of collected taxes,” City Manager Greg Usry said in a statement. “The city remains ready and willing to make payment. Moreover, the city remains ready to meet with the county to discuss a complete resolution that benefits all.”
The battle of tax collection is more than just a fight between county and municipality. In the middle of it all is the Rye City School District, which relies on tax revenues collected by the city to make its budget.
At the Board of Education meeting on Sept. 24, Superintendent of Schools Eric Byrne explained that with Playland on the tax roll, taxpayers would see a small reduction, .77 percent, in their tax bills. But when Playland was removed from the tax roll after the initial court ruling, the school tax rate increased by 2.36 percent in 2024-25.
“This creates continued uncertainty for overall taxable assessment and its impact on the tax rate for 2025-26,” Byrne said, noting that the school budget includes the $2.24 million assessed for Playland, which by law must be disbursed if it’s on the tax rolls. But if the taxes are not collected, it could leave a giant hole in the middle of the school budget.
“We have asked the county repeatedly and the city to please resolve this without further damage to the school district,” Byrne said.