A man who's been working to keep a family home on Binghamton's West Side said it appears to him that Broome County "still wants to punish us."

Volodymyr Kurylo -- who now lives in the state of Maine -- said he met with county attorney Robert Behnke and real property tax service director Kevin Keough Tuesday morning.

Broome County seized an Arthur Street house owned by the Kurylo family for non-payment of taxes.

In recent weeks, Kurylo has been meeting with county representatives to reach an agreement to pay back taxes and penalties to prevent the property from being sold at auction.

Speaking on WNBF Radio's Binghamton Now program, Kurylo described county officials as "relentless." He said they don't want to credit the rent his sister paid for January and February. He said his sister also was not able to collect rent from a tenant for those months.

Kurylo said the county "just keeps piling on the charges." He said the county is seeking thousands of dollars beyond the taxes that were owed, along with penalties and interest.

Kurylo said his goal had been to close on the deal to regain the home after a scheduled vote by the Broome County legislature on Thursday. He said the county wants to delay the closing for a "variety of reasons."

Kurylo said there were "other issues" involved in the case, which he declined to discuss. He said county officials want to "bitterly cling to every property they've confiscated."

Keough told WNBF News he didn't want to discuss the meeting with Kurylo. But he said the "process should move forward through the legislature," noting Thursday's meeting.

Behnke could not be reached for comment.

 

 

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