County of Lehigh v. Lerner

Opinion by

Judge MacPhail,

This is an appeal by the County of Lehigh (Appellant) from an order and decision by the Court of Common Pleas of Lehigh County which denied Appellant the right to collect payment in lieu of taxes from Appellees.1

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (DOT) is the owner of sixteen acres in South Whitehall Township, Lehigh County. In 1977, DOT leased this property to Leslie A. Lerner and Murray Saltzman to be used as a golf center. An identical lease was entered in 1979, except that Leslie Murray Company, Inc. was named as lessee.

Appellant filed a complaint in…