Answer.POS.081826.pdf
Tim Donut US Limited Inc Petitioner Vs. Township Of Davison Respondent · 26-001614-TT
Text extracted from the reviewed PDF, organized by page. OCR and reading order may contain errors; confirm details in the PDF below.
Page 1
STATE OF MICHIGAN DEPARTMENT OF LICENSING & REGULATORY AFFAIRS MICHIGAN TAX TRIBUNAL TIM DONUT US LIMITED, INC., Petitioner, Docket No. 26-001614 vs. DAVISON TOWNSHIP, Respondent. Joshua Shillair (P72674) William E. Delzer (P68488) Representative for Petitioner Attorney for Respondent Colliers International 8332 Office Park Dr., Ste B 400 W. 4th Street, Ste 350 Grand Blanc, MI 48439 Royal Oak, MI 48067 (810) 603-1000 Joshua.Shillair@Colliers.com wdelzer@delzerlegal.com _____________________________________________________________________________ ANSWER TO ENTIRE TRIBUNAL PROPERTY TAX PETITION AND AFFIRMATIVE DEFENSES NOW COMES Respondent, Davison Township, by and through their attorney William E. Delzer, and in response to the Petition in this cause, sets forth to this Honorable Tribunal as follows: 1. That as an answer to paragraph 1 of Petition, Respondent neither admits nor denies the allegations contained therein and leaves Petitioner to its proofs. 2. That as an answer to paragraph 2 of Petition, admits the allegations contained therein. 3. That as an answer to paragraph 3 of Petition, Respondent admits the allegations contained therein. 4. That as an answer to paragraph 4 of Petition, Respondent neither admits nor denies the allegations contained therein and leaves Petitioner to its proofs. 5. That as an answer to paragraph 5 of Petition, Respondent neither admits nor denies the allegations contained therein and leaves Petitioner to its proofs. 6. That as an answer to paragraph 6 of Petition, Respondent neither admits nor denies the allegations contained therein and leaves Petitioner to its proofs.
Page 2
7. That as an answer to paragraph 7 of Petition, Respondent neither admits nor denies the allegations contained therein and leaves Petitioner to its proofs. 8. That as an answer to paragraph 8 of Petition, Respondent admits the allegations contained therein. 9. That as an answer to paragraph 9 of Petition, Respondent neither admits nor denies the allegations contained therein and leaves Petitioner to its proofs. 10. That as an answer to paragraph 10 of Petition, Respondent denies the allegations contained therein. 11. That as an answer to paragraph 11 of Petition, Respondent denies the allegations contained therein. 12. That as an answer to paragraph 12 of Petition, Respondent denies the allegations contained therein. 13. That as an answer to paragraph 13 of Petition, Respondent denies the allegations contained therein. WHEREFORE, Respondent denies Petitioner’s prayer for relief and prays that this Honorable Tribunal affirm the 2026 assessment and taxable value of the subject property and award Respondent costs, attorney fees and any other relief that this Honorable Tribunal may deem appropriate. Respectfully submitted, DELZER LEGAL Dated: August 18, 2026 William E. Delzer (68488) Attorney for Respondent
Page 3
AFFIRMATIVE DEFENSES Respondent, Davison Township asserts the following affirmation defenses: 1. Petitioner fails to allege specific and sufficient facts to set forth a cause of action against Respondent and to support its claim for relief 2. The Tribunal is charged with finding a property’s true cash value to determine the property’s lawful assessment. Alhi Dev Co v Orion Twp, 110 Mich App 764, 767 (1981). 3. Petitioner has the burden of establishing the property’s true cash value. See MCL 205.737(3) and Kern v Pontiac Twp, 93 Mich App 612 (1974). 4. Petitioner has failed to allege that the mode and method of assessing the subject property fails to conform to the mode and method applied in the case of all other properties in Respondent’s taxing unit for the year in question. 5. Petitioner failed to show that any factor other than fifty percent (50%) was applied to the true cash value of Petitioner’s property, as well as others, to arrive at the respective assessments appearing on the roll, and also fails to allege specific and sufficient facts to support its allegations that the property’s taxable value is improper. 6. Petitioner asks the Tribunal to grant it preference by application of a self- chosen method of assessment contrary to the intent, purpose and law of this State. 7. Petitioner, in essence, asks the Tribunal to grant it an illegal preference by application of a method of assessment different from that employed in the assessment of other properties in Respondent’s taxing unit. 8. Petitioner, in essence, seeks by petition to challenge the process of county and state equalization as to which it has no legal standing and cannot maintain a cause of action. 9. Any decrease in the value of Petitioner’s property was a result of its own intentional acts and/or negligence and cannot be allowed to reduce Petitioner’s otherwise equitable tax burden. 10. Respondent has property and lawfully assessed Petitioner’s property and established its taxable value in accordance with statutory and constitutional requirements.
Page 4
11. Respondent reserves the right to raise additional affirmative defenses as the same may become known to it during the course of these proceedings. WHEREFORE, Respondent prays that this Honorable Tribunal affirm the 2026 assessment and taxable value of the subject property and award Respondent costs, attorney fees and other relief that this Honorable Tribunal may deem appropriate. Respectfully submitted, DELZER LEGAL Dated: August 18, 2026 William E. Delzer (68488) Attorney for Respondent
Page 5
STATE OF MICHIGAN DEPARTMENT OF LICENSING & REGULATORY AFFAIRS MICHIGAN TAX TRIBUNAL TIM DONUT US LIMITED, INC., Petitioner, Docket No. 26-001614 vs. DAVISON TOWNSHIP, Respondent. Joshua Shillair (P72674) William E. Delzer (P68488) Representative for Petitioner Attorney for Respondent Colliers International 8332 Office Park Dr., Ste B 400 W. 4th Street, Ste 350 Grand Blanc, MI 48439 Royal Oak, MI 48067 (810) 603-1000 Joshua.Shillair@Colliers.com wdelzer@delzerlegal.com _____________________________________________________________________________ PROOF OF SERVICE OF ANSWER AND AFFIRMATIVE DEFENSES TO ENTIRE TRIBUNAL TAX PETITION FOR 2026 I, William E. Delzer, being duly sworn deposes and says that on August 18, 2026 he served a copy of Respondent’s Answer to and Affirmative Defenses to Entire Tribunal Tax Petition for 2026 and this proof of service by first class mail to: Joshua Shillair, 400 W. 4th Street, Ste 350, Royal Oak, MI 48067 by placing in an envelope addressing, it to their address of record with proper postage attached and depositing in a US Postal receptacle. William E. Delzer