WSMV Channel 4 Vanderbilt appealing its place among delinquent Metro taxpayers

Vanderbilt appealing its place among delinquent Metro taxpayers

Nashville's most prominent private university is fighting a property tax bill from the city.

Vanderbilt shows up on Davidson County's list of delinquent taxpayers, but the university is appealing, saying it should be exempt from paying.

At the center of the battle are the school's fraternity houses. University officials say the fraternities are more like dorms, so they should be completely tax exempt.

Critics say not so much.

"That is not a reasonable property tax exemption. These are well-off kids, in Vanderbilt, who are clearly able to pay their taxes," said Ben Cunningham, with Tennessee Tax Revolt.

Cunningham says these are not the kinds of people who need any tax breaks right now.

"There are a lot of people that pay their property taxes on time, every year who probably would not want a fraternity house to get an exemption," he said.

The city says the university's fraternity houses owe thousands of dollars in unpaid property taxes.

The university appealed for full-time tax exemption status in 2007, when it took ownership of those properties.

Officials lost that appeal, then re-appealed.

And in the meantime, the fraternity houses have not paid property taxes in the last couple of years.

"If most people in Davidson County, most homeowners, have chosen not to pay their property taxes in four years, there would be consequences," Cunningham said.

Currently, the Vanderbilt fraternity houses only have to pay the city half of what they would otherwise have to pay.

But because they are still appealing, they haven't paid a dime.

"Legally, we are required to pay anything under appeal, but we do plan to pay those two years," said Clayton Arrington, Vanderbilt senior director of the Office of the Dean of Students.

Arrington says despite the stereotypes, fraternity houses are mainly meant for sleeping and studying, not partying.

"If you were to look at how these facilities are used, it's not just for parties. In fact, that's such a small percentage of it, and that's in part why we feel like a 100 percent exemption is accurate," he said.

If Vanderbilt University wins its property tax appeal, the city has to refund all of its money plus interest. The university hopes to hear a decision on that by the end of the year.

As for the sorority houses, because the university does not own those properties, they have not asked for an exemption on those properties.

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