Baxter v. DeKay

93 Misc. 203, 157 N.Y.S. 156
CourtNew York Supreme Court
DecidedJanuary 15, 1916
StatusPublished

This text of 93 Misc. 203 (Baxter v. DeKay) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New York Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Baxter v. DeKay, 93 Misc. 203, 157 N.Y.S. 156 (N.Y. Super. Ct. 1916).

Opinion

Brown, J.

On the south side of State street, in the city of Olean, a strip of land on substantially the street level, about thirty-two feet wide,- extends southerly from the street to the Pittsburgh, Shawmut and Northern Railroad lands, its northwestern corner being about one hundred and twenty-one and a half feet east of the west face of the east abutment of the bridge over the Olean creek; from the eastern edge of this strip the ground slopes rapidly to the east to the water of a pond or basin that extends from ten to fifteen feet from the street on the north to about the same distance from the railroad lands on the south; the western side of the pond forming practically a straight line from the street to the railroad; the top of the strip of land being about ten or twelve feet above the level of the water in the pond; from the western edge of this strip the ground slopes rapidly to the west to- the waters of Olean creek, the top of the strip being about twenty feet above the ordinary level of the creek; the land between the strip and the creek being very narrow at the southern end, only a few feet in width east and west, of irregular shape of varying widths and at the north end being one hundred and twenty-one and a half feet wide on the street, all being low land but very little above the [205]*205level of the creek, and at times of high water entirely flooded, never having been occupied, and substantially covéred with weeds, brush and flood trash; from the street surface down to the low-lying land is a drop of about twenty feet very steep and precipitous. The strip of land thus situated constitutes an embankment of about thirty-two feet in width, extending from the street on the same level south to the railroad lands, having upon its northern end, and but a few feet from the street line, a two-story, frame building, standing in about the center of the strip, such building being twenty-four feet wide east and west and eighty feet long north and south with its southern end about one hundred feet from the railroad lands. The plaintiff is the owner in fee of the strip of land or embankment above described, which, together with the building, had been occupied by her husband for years and known as the seedhouse premises; but the plaintiff does not own the low-lying land between this strip or embankment and the Olean creek on the west.

With the premises in the above described condition and situation, the plaintiff, on the 3d day of January, 1913, entered into a written agreement under seal with W. A. Chamberlain, whereby she leased to Chamberlain One large frame, two-story building located on Bast State Street, between the two bridges that cross the two portions of Olean Creek, and the land adjacent thereto being the land on which the building stands, and being all the land between the pond on the east and the Olean Creek on the west,” for one year from February 1, 1913, at $18 per month, in which lease plaintiff granted to Chamberlain the option to purchase at any time during the term of this lease, the building and premises covered by this lease at the price of $2,000 and hereby does agree to give to the parties a clear and satisfactory title to said premises. ’ ’ [206]*206On January 16, 1913, Chamberlain assigned the lease to Allen Razor Hone Company, a copartnership consisting of F. C. Allen and defendant, and such copartnership entered into possession of the building and ’ the lands of the plaintiff adjacent thereto between the pond and the Clean creek, continuing such occupation until November 17, 1913, when F. C. Allen assigned all his interest in the lease to the defendant, who continued in possession of such lands so occupied by such copartnership, is now in such possession, using the same for the manufacture of razor hones, and has never been in possession or occupation of the lands lying between the embankment and the Clean creek.

On January 3, 1914, the defendant stated to the plaintiff that he would not purchase the premises under the option clause in the lease, that he was going to vacate the premises, would not renew the lease for a year, but would occupy as tenant for an additional month at the same rental.

On January 23, 1914, the plaintiff, relying upon the statement of the defendant that he would not purchase the premises under said option clause, entered into a contract for the sale of all the lands between the . main channel to the east of the pond and the Clean creek above referred to, and the street on the north and the railroad to the south for the sum of $4,000' to the city of Clean upon condition that the city of Clean gave notice of the acceptance of such offer on or before March 1, 1915, such contract or option evidently covering the lands described in the lease owned by the plaintiff and several hundred feet of land on State street, including the pond. On January 28,1914, the defendant, having learned of the apparent necessity of the city of Clean acquiring the lands described in the lease held by him for flood-abatement purposes, served a written notice on the plaintiff that he elected [207]*207to purchase the same under the option clause in the lease and was ready to pay the $2,000 upon delivery of a deed therefor. In August, 1915, the city of Olean having failed to purchase under its contract of January 23, 1914, the plaintiff tendered a deed to the defendant of the land as described in his lease and demanded the sum of $2,000, whereupon the defendant declined to make such payment until the plaintiff furnished a good title to the lands lying between the embankment and the Olean creek, claiming that she had agreed to convey all the land between the pond and the creek, that she owned only to the west edge of the embankment, and that her deed then tendered conveyed no title to lands between the embankment and the creek. Plaintiff then demanded possession of the premises, and defendant refusing to vacate plaintiff brought this action in ejectment to recover such posession. Defendant denies plaintiff’s right to possession and alleges that he is in possession under the contract to sell, consisting of plaintiff’s option in the lease and his written acceptance thereof, alleges plaintiff’s want of title to part of the lands that she has agreed to sell, and his damages, and demands judgment that plaintiff be required to specifically perform her contract to sell, or, in the event title can not be given, that he be awarded his damages.

It is difficult to see why the defendant’s statement to-the plaintiff on the 3d day of January, 1914, that he did not want to purchase the property, was not going to purchase, would not lease for another year, and was going to vacate the premises at the end of another month, did not constitute a complete waiver of his right to purchase under the contract. The plaintiff acted upon such waiver, and relied thereon on the 27th day of January, 1914, when she gave an option to purchase to the city of Olean. The plaintiff having relied [208]*208upon such waiver when she gave the option to the city on the 27th day of January, 1914, the defendant was estopped from exercising his right to purchase under the option contained in his lease, on the 28th day of January, 1914. The right to purchase under the option having been waived by the defendant, and he being estopped from exercising such right on the 28th day of January, 1914, there could be no valid contract created by the option and its attempted acceptance on the 28th day of January, 1914. The contract relations of the parties had ended; as a matter of law there never was a valid contract to sell the premises which was binding on the defendant.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
93 Misc. 203, 157 N.Y.S. 156, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/baxter-v-dekay-nysupct-1916.