Berberich v. Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission

12 Pa. D. & C.2d 232, 1956 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 297
Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Butler County·Decided March 22, 1956·No. no. 32·Published

Opinion

Shumaker, P. J.,

— This matter is before the court on exceptions filed by defendant to a report of the board of view.

Prior to June 14, 1949, plaintiffs owned a tract of land which consisted of 10.654 acres, situate in Cranberry Township, Butler County, having thereon erected a one and one-half story stone dwelling house. This property was bounded and described as follows: On the north by lands of Sophia Schaudt, on the east for a distance of 662 feet by Legislative Route 246, also known as Highway Route 19 or the Perry Highway, on the south by lands of E. S. Taylor and on the west by lands of the Thornhill Industrial School.

On said June 14, 1949, the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission formally adopted the resolution fixing and locating the Western Pennsylvania Turnpike Extension from the western terminus of the then existing turnpike at Irwin, Westmoreland County, to a point on the boundary line between the States of Pennsylvania and Ohio.

[233] Subsequent to June 14, 1949, in November of 1949, the contractor for the building of the turnpike entered on to the condemned property of plaintiffs and the Commonwealth tendered to plaintiffs an amended bond on February 23, 1950, the original bond having incorrectly designated the wrong parties as property owners. The original bond has designated the parties as George and Lorenz Berberich rather than George and Wilhelmina Berberich.

The commission by its resolution condemned in fee 4.301 acres from the extreme western portion of plaintiffs’ land, above described, said condemned portion being bounded on the north 167.46 feet by lands of Sophia Schaudt, on the east 780.05 feet by other lands of plaintiffs, on the south 305.08 feet by lands of E. S. Taylor and on the west 887.75 feet by lands of the Thornhill Industrial School.

On September 29, 1950, the Pennsylvania Department of Highways relocated Legislative Route 426, known as Highway Route 19 or the Perry Highway, in order to “tie into” the Perry Highway Interchange of the Pennsylvania Turnpike which was located on the land condemned from the Thornhill Industrial School.

The turnpike commission built a road wholly on the condemned lands of plaintiffs and granted an easement to the Pennsylvania Department of Highways over certain lands condemned for a highway access to the Perry Highway.

Subsequent to the completion of the turnpike and the Perry Interchange, on or about July of 1952, the turnpike commision erected a woven wire fence, wholly on its own property, for a distance of approximately 780 feet along the line of lands retained by plaintiffs.

Plaintiffs petitioned for the appointment of a board of viewers, which board was duly appointed by this court, and after view and hearing, said board filed its [234] report on September 13, 1955, .awarding plaintiffs the sum of $29,000 as the amount.of their damages, which report set forth that the board took into, consideration in arriving at said figure the damages for the land of plaintiffs actually taken, consequential damages, delay in payment and for any other cause, matter or thing whatsoever of every kind or nature arising therefrom in the construction and .erection of the Pennsylvania Turnpike Extension.

The exceptions now before the court were then filed in behalf of the turnpike commission. .

As stated by counsel for the turnpike commission, the sole question before the court is:

“When the Turnpike Commission condemns lands in fee and subsequent to the condemnation builds an access public highway to its Interchange on the lands which it had previously condemned, and erects a fence on its own lands barring the plaintiffs (adjoining property owners) from access to said public highway, is the denial of this right to the plaintiffs consequential damages which are recoverable by the plaintiffs in a proceeding against the Pennsylvania Turnpike for the original taking of the plaintiffs’ land?”

The board of view in their report finds as a fact that the only highway which bordered plaintiffs’ property prior to June 14, 1949, was the then existing Perry Highway, also known as Legislative. Route 246 or Pennsylvania Traffic Route 19, but they also find as a fact that after the condemnation date, namely, on September 29, 1950, this highway was relocated and plaintiffs did not have accessible road frontage on the western portion of their property until that date.

The .board found as a conclusion of law that plaintiffs had a legal right to access to the new road built on the lands condemned by the turnpike commission and denial of access because of the erection of a high woven wire fence by said, commission was consequen[235] tial damages for which plaintiffs were entitled • to recover.

The question raised by the exceptions now before us is admittedly a very difficult one and this court has been unable to find any case involving this very problem to help or guide us in the decision we are now called upon to make.

The first question involved is the date that is to be considered in the fixing of the damages occasioned by the condemnation. On this point there seems to be little doubt that the date of the adoption of the resolution and approval by the Governor, namely, June 14, 1949, is the condemnation date for the Western Extension of the Pennsylvania Turnpike-, and that all matters pertaining to the condemnation are fixed as of said date.

In the case of Lakewood Memorial Gardens, Inc. Appeal, 381 Pa. 46 (1955), a similar problem was before the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, in which case it was the turnpike commission’s contention that the taking involved occurred upon the adoption of the resolution of condemnation on June 14, 1949, while the property owner asserted that the appropriation did hot take place until June 11, 1950, the date the commission’s bond was delivered to Lakewood to secure payment of the damages due. The viewers concluded that the time of taking was the date of the passage of the condemnation resolution and expressly stated the same in their report. The lower court confirmed the report of viewers and the award of damages, and the appeal was taken to our highest tribunal in our Commonwealth. The opinion of the court in said case, written by Mr. Justice Jones, stated:

“. . . we think it is both logical and just to conclude that the Commission’s formal adoption of the condemnation resolution which set forth the' location of the proposed turnpike extension by description and plans, [236] approved by the Governor and the Department of Highways, constituted an appropriation of the indicated properties.”

The Supreme Court affirmed in the Lakewood Case the lower court, stating:

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Berberich v. Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission, 12 Pa. D. & C.2d 232, 1956 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 297 (Pa. Super. Ct. 1956).

12 Pa. D. & C.2d 232 (Berberich v. Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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Lakewood Memorial Gardens, Inc. Appeal
112 A.2d 135 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1955)
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185 A. 801 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1936)
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23 A.2d 880 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1941)