George Gibson v. Howard L. Gleason, Jr. as Assessor of the

The owner's property consisted of farmland and several buildings, which land was encumbered by a conservation easement. After the assessment, the owner challenged the assessments in two proceedings, wherein the owner asserted that the assessed value was excessive because it was not reduced by the full value of the easement.

It was noted that a condition of the easement was that the owner relinquished his right to develop the property in perpetuity. The expert for each party testified at trial, after which the trial court entered a judgment in favor of the owner, based on his expert's assessed value. On appeal by the assessor, the court initially noted that issues not raised before the trial court were not preserved for purposes of appellate review. Further, any issues with respect to the admission of the owner's appraisal report were waived by a pre--trial stipulation as to the admission thereof.

The court found that the owner's expert's report successfully rebutted the presumption of validity of the assessment by the assessor, and that it was supported by the evidence that the easement substantially reduced the value of the property.