A Bergen County judge ruled the American Dream mall in East Rutherford was fully open for business when it opened its doors to the public in 2019, dealing a major blow to American Dream’s lawyers who argued it never reached 100% occupancy and was therefore not fully open.
That clause in its agreement with the state enabled the mall to avoid paying $13 million in what’s known as payments in lieu of taxes or PILOT fees to surrounding towns.
Officials in East Rutherford sued the mall’s owners in 2023 over those missed payments. Eight other surrounding communities are also owed money. In the court ruling the judge said those payments should have started the day customers could enter and start using the entertainment complex.
