After five years of preliminary court proceedings, the operators of an East Ridge apartment complex and the Hamilton County Waste Water Treatment Authority are essentially back at square one in their fight over an $8 monthly charge the WWTA introduced in 2011 to pay for infrastructure upgrades.
The Supreme Court of Tennessee said Friday that American Heritage Apartments Inc. can file suit against the WWTA in court. The Court of Appeals previously ruled that the apartment owners could sue in a class action suit, but WWTA had appealed to the higher court.
The Supreme Court decision also kicked back to a local trial court the decision of whether to allow class action status on the suit.
American Heritage's complaint is rooted in the monthly $8 charge WWTA introduced in 2011 to its 26,000 customers to spread the costs of doing mandatory infrastructure upgrades as ordered by the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation following storm and rainwater issues addressed in 2008.
American Heritage challenged the new $8 monthly charge in 2011, which would cost its property, Park Ridge Apartments in East Ridge, an estimated $289,000 over the span of 20 years.
The apartment complex said at 90 percent occupancy, it would have to pay the new $8 a month charge 151 times every month, for 20 years.
American Heritage also sought class action status to sue the WWTA on behalf of other affected parties, which would potentially add up to 26,000 plaintiffs to the complaint.
The WWTA, in return, asked that American Heritage's complaint be dismissed, citing the Utility District Law of 1937, which requires utility customers to take certain "administrative remedies" and deal directly with a utility provider before taking legal complaints to court.
The Supreme Court's Friday ruling carried with it positives for both sides, as American Heritage's complaint was again upheld, but also as the class action status it seeks was put back into the hands of a local trial court to decide.
Mike Moon, local volunteer chairman of the WWTA board, said Friday that "WWTA is happy with the decision of the Supreme Court to rule that the class-action suit was improperly certified and remand it back to trial court."
Legal representatives for WWTA and American Heritage Apartments were not available for comment Friday afternoon.
Contact staff writer Alex Green at agreen@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6480.