Pheasant Ridge Associates Ltd. Partnership v. Town of Burlington

The defendant town, acting through its selectmen, purported to take a 14.5 acre parcel on Center Street pursuant to a unanimous vote of a September 23, 1985, town meeting. The town voted to take the property “for the purpose of parks, recreation, and the construction of moderate income housing which will be subject to the review and approval of Town Meeting." The vote further appropriated $1,130,000 from available funds to pay for the land taking. On October 21, 1985, the selectmen adopted an order of taking which was recorded in the appropriate registry of deeds on November 15.

At the time of…