Under a settlement, Hartford agreed to reduce the appraised fair market value of Nassau Life Insurance Co.’s building at 1 American Row.
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The city of Hartford will lose about $1 million in tax revenue after settling a property tax appeal with the owner of a 14-story downtown office building.
Under a settlement finalized in late September, Hartford agreed to reduce the appraised fair market value of Nassau Life Insurance Co.’s building at 1 American Row from $18.9 million to $11 million.
The nearly 42% reduction in the fair market value is retroactive to the 2022, 2023 and 2024 assessment years.
This will result in a credit of $705,569 to Nassau for overpaid property taxes and Downtown Business Improvement District taxes applied against the 2022 and 2023 assessments, according to James Woulfe, chief of staff to Mayor Arunan Arulampalam.
The settlement was reached before 2024 assessments were billed, Woulfe said.
As a result of the credit, Nassau will not pay city property or BID taxes in July of 2026 or January of 2027, Woulfe said. Remaining credit will be applied against the July 2026 tax bill.
In addition to the credit for taxes already overpaid, the reduction in valuation lowers the company's tax bills by hundreds-of-thousands of dollars moving forward, at least until the Oct. 1, 2026 citywide revaluation of taxable property values is applied.
Nassau filed a lawsuit appealing its valuation in Hartford Superior Court in August 2023. That case was later transferred to New Britain Superior Court, where a settlement was concluded.
Attorney Michael Collins, of Halloran & Sage, represented the city. Attorney Elliot B. Pollack, of Pullman & Comley, represented Nassau.
The 12-story tower portion of Nassau’s 385,365-square-foot building is formed by two-curved exterior walls, giving it a unique appearance and leading to its moniker as “The Boat Building.”
Nassau’s successful appeal is the latest in a string of costly tax reversals on large office properties in downtown Hartford. The city has struggled with high vacancies in its commercial office sector since the onset of the pandemic and a broad acceptance of remote work.
Nassau’s building has, however, managed to remain nearly completely occupied by the company and a handful of tenants.