Palisades Center and Shops of Nanuet Awarded Millions in Tax Reimbursements

by M.C. Millman

The Palisades Center will be reimbursed $27.5 million, half of what it demanded after challenging the assessment of four years of property taxes paid to the town of Clarkstown, the Clarkstown school district, and Rockland County.

As a result of the most recent lawsuit, which began in March 2024, as reported previously by Rockland Daily here, the Clarkstown school district will reimburse the Palisades Center nearly $18 million of the $27.5 million, while Clarkstown returns $7.8 million and Rockland County $1.7 million.

The reimbursement resolution was approved Tuesday morning by the Clarkstown town board by a vote of 4-0 followed by a vote to bond up to $8.7 million to cover tax settlement costs.

While the town originally toted the mall as a major way to cut property taxes for the town, county, and local school district for residents, the writing was already on the wall for this clearly debatable claim given that before the mall opened in 1998, the owners had already filed their first tax assessment challenge.

In the meantime, the Palisades Center remains overdue on repaying a $418.5 million mortgage it took out in 2016.

To add insult to injury for Clarkstown, the town board also passed a multi-million-dollar tax settlement with the Shops of Nanuet, which will cost the Nanuet school district around $2 million and the town about $828,000, plus more from Rockland County.