Hull, Mass — The owners of Graves Light do not have to pay property taxes to the town of Hull because the lighthouse does not fall under the town’s jurisdiction, a Massachusetts Land Court judge ruled.
Land Court Judge Diane R. Rubin decided that the lighthouse, owned by David Waller, his wife Lynn Waller and philanthropist Bobby Sager, does not lie in Hull.
Waller applauded the judge’s decision in a statement.
“In our heart of hearts we knew we were right and we stood our ground,” said Waller. “We had so many wonderful supporters throughout this process who reached out to us, creating a groundswell of support. It feels good to be vindicated and we want to thank our Mintz legal team as well as the judge for her carefully crafted and well-reasoned decision.”
Waller bought the lighthouse in 2013 at auction and has been renovating it ever since. It wasn’t until five years into the project, however, that he claims he was hit with a $3,000 property tax bill from the town of Hull. Waller says that he was told the lighthouse was located on unincorporated state waters and thus not subject to any municipality’s jurisdiction.
The debate between lighthouse keepers and town went to trial in June 2022.
“When we bought the place we hired a land attorney to see what the jurisdictions were and check with all the towns, and he couldn’t come up with anything about where we were,” Waller told Boston 25 in 2020.
Boston 25 News has reached out to Hull town officials for comment.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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