By Jay Rey
NEWS STAFF REPORTER

06/25/09 07:15 AM

Erie County will be repaid $310,000 in delinquent bed taxes from businessman James A. Cosentino under a settlement agreement reached Wednesday, according to County Attorney Cheryl A. Green.

While that’s about three-quarters of what the delinquent hotelier owed the county in bed taxes collected from guests years ago, Green said she is satisfied.

“We’re set to recover about 76 cents on the dollar, which we think is a pretty good result considering the history of this group,” Green said. “The county is very pleased we have been able to resolve this issue on behalf of the taxpayers.”

Cosentino is president of the company that owned the former Radisson Hotel across from Buffalo Niagara International Airport. The hotel is no longer operating, but a Cosentino company still owed the government about $400,000 in bed taxes, according to Green.

“I believe it’s a good settlement for the people of Erie County, assuming they’ll make the full payment as the agreement states,” said County Comptroller Mark C. Poloncarz.

But this issue has been going on for far too long, Poloncarz said, and he won’t assume it’s over until the checks clear.

For more than 15 years, county officials have tried to collect the bed taxes from Cosentino, a generous donor to politicians on the state, federal and local levels.

Dating from 1993, the county worked and reworked payment schedules for the Cosentino bed taxes — more than $1 million in 2003. A comptroller’s audit last June showed the amount owed was $433,641 in principal and penalties.

Early last year, the Cosentino group once again defaulted on repayment terms, Green said, and the county sent numerous letters ordering payment.

“Ultimately, when it was clear we were not going to get relief, we actually worked with an outside attorney to resolve the matter,” Green said.

The county was set to take legal action if the issue wasn’t resolved by the end of this month, but a deal was reached by the two parties Wednesday, she said.

“It will be made in two payments,” Green said. “We should be receiving the first payment of about $150,000 very shortly.”

“The other payment of $160,000 will be made within six months,” Green said.

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