The developer of the Waterview Residences in Dillon said he did not know of unpaid 2024 property taxes until a council member floated the idea of purchasing the unpaid taxes in a tax lien sale during an Oct. 14 work session.

A company run by Jake Porritt, who has several proposed redevelopment projects in Dillon’s town core, bought the property formerly known as Uptown 240 in a bankruptcy sale in February 2024. Dillon Town Council member Barbara Richard said Oct. 14 that the property “has not paid their taxes.”

“I didn’t know if that was something we could pursue, buying that,” Richard said. “It is at 14% interest.”

Any unpaid 2024 property taxes will be included in Summit County’s tax lien sale on Oct. 29. Investors can buy those unpaid taxes, allowing the county to collect the tax revenue it is owed and giving the investors the ability to collect those taxes, plus interest, from the debtors. State law set the interest for 2024 tax lien sales at 14%, according to the Summit County website.

Porritt said Richard’s comments were the first he or his team had heard of the unpaid taxes, which totaled over $63,800 as of Oct. 22, according to county public records, because they had never received a tax bill from the town. He said the company that owns the Waterview property, 240 Lake Dillon JV LLC, will pay the taxes before the lien sale.

Dillon town manager Nathan Johnson wrote in an email that the town has “no comment” on Porritt’s claim that he did not receive the tax bill or whether or not the town would have considered purchasing the unpaid taxes.

Porritt said his legal counsel found Richard’s comments odd, as she spoke in a public meeting about a specific property owner having unpaid taxes and suggested the town purchase the unpaid taxes in the lien sale. Porritt also said his company would have paid the taxes sooner if the town had called him.

Richard’s comments exemplify difficulties Porritt has had working with new council members, he said. Former council members Dana Christiansen, Renee Imamura and John Woods were recalled and replaced by Linda Oliver, Richard and Joshua Samuel in March. The three new council members were critical of Porritt’s development plans, and the three former members had voted to approve some of his projects, including one that was overturned at a referendum election in 2024. Richard did not immediately return a request for comment on Thursday.

The construction of Waterview has stalled since Porritt’s companies took over the failed development that first broke ground in June 2019. Porritt said they have had issues getting an owner-controlled insurance program, which covers most liability that could arise during construction of a project.

Porritt said insurance providers can see conflict between his companies and the town as a sign that his companies have done something wrong, making it more difficult to obtain the needed coverage.

The Town Council last received an update on the Waterview project from town engineer Dan Burroughs at a July 8 work session. He said the developers had completed necessary demolition at the site and were working on updating site plans, but he did not mention the insurance issue.

Burroughs referenced the development agreement between the town and Porritt’s company, saying it was amended in September 2024 and requires the project be completed by Oct. 31, 2028.

“I can’t really speak to the timeline, except (that) they’re working towards it, and I’m pretty optimistic that they can get it done,” Burroughs said. “They still have 40 months to complete the project. That’s a long time.”