Company files suit over dam taxes

ST. JOHNSBURY — The owner of two dams on the Connecticut River is suing the town of Barnet, Vt., saying its tax appraisals of the structures are too high.
TransCanada Hydro Northeast is taking aim at the tax appraisals assigned to the Comerford and McIndoe Falls dams, which have seen their valuations go from a combined $33.7 million before a recent reappraisal to a combined $47.4 million now.
TransCanada spokesman Grady Semmens says the company is working to reach a settlement with the town and the state of Vermont. But it also has filed suit in Vermont Superior Court for Caledonia County.
Town officials are hoping for the state’s help in paying legal bills. The state hired and paid for an appraiser in 2010 to assign new values to the dams.
TransCanada has also filed an appeal against a tax assessment on a hydro power dam it owns near Bellows Falls.