Boudreaux v. Braun Investments, L.L.C.

869 So. 2d 180, 3 La.App. 5 Cir. 1070, 2004 La. App. LEXIS 312, 2004 WL 324904
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedFebruary 23, 2004
DocketNo. 03-CA-1070
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 869 So. 2d 180 (Boudreaux v. Braun Investments, L.L.C.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Boudreaux v. Braun Investments, L.L.C., 869 So. 2d 180, 3 La.App. 5 Cir. 1070, 2004 La. App. LEXIS 312, 2004 WL 324904 (La. Ct. App. 2004).

Opinion

MARION F. EDWARDS, Judge.

Plaintiffs Randy and Pamela Boudreaux appeal a judgment of the 23rd Judicial District Court dismissing their petition against the defendants Braun Investments L.L.C., its principal owners Mary Rose Brown and Jerry L. Brown, the Town of Lutcher, Mayor Troas A. Poche, Mayor of Lutcher, and Dean Millet, Lutcher Planning and Zoning Commissioner. We affirm.

The conflict at issue is a dispute between the Boudreauxs, who reside in Acadia Subdivision in the Town of Lutcher, and the Browns, who purchased commercial property next to the Boudreaux residence, at 1870 Cabanose Avenue, and established a funeral home. The tract of land that ultimately developed into the Acadia Subdivision was previously owned by Industrial Cleanup Inc. (I.C.I.) and was annexed by ordinance by the Town of Lutcher in 1978.

On October 21, 2002, the Boudreauxs filed their Petition For Declaratory Judgment, Injunctive Relief and Writ of Mandamus, alleging that in 1992, they purchased Lots B, C, and D which land was immediately adjacent to a lot A. On Lot A was a building which formerly housed a Pelican Homestead Savings and 1.¡Loan Company. The Boudreauxs averred that prior to their purchase of the property in 1992, they were informed the entire tract of I.C.I. property, including Lot A, was zoned C-l, and that in order to put a residence on their property, the zoning would have to be changed to R-l. The Boudreauxs claimed that the lots were, in actual fact, already legally classified as R-1.

According to the petition, in January 1992, the Lutcher Board of Alderman, through Ordinance 92-04, “changed” the zoning on Lots B, C, and D to R-l. When the Boudreauxs completed their purchase of the property, the Act of Sale established a right of servitude of passage in their favor from the adjoining Lot A to Lot B. Thereafter, the Boudreauxs built their family residence on their property.

In 1999, the Boudreauxs learned that the defendants, the Browns, intended to purchase Lot A and the Homestead Building at 1870 Cabanose Avenue, and open a funeral home thereon. Pamela Boudreaux circulated a door-to-door petition with names of residents who opposed the placement of a funeral home on the property. The petition was taken to the Lutcher Board of Alderman at the May 24, 1999 meeting. In September 1999, the Browns purchased the building.

[183]*183On April 2, 2002, the Lutcher Board of Alderman passed Zoning Ordinance 02-02, and a new Zoning Map Ordinance No. 02-OS, depicting the Lot A property as being contained within a C-2 zoning district. The Browns applied for and received a building permit, and renovation work began to convert the Pelican Building to a funeral home. The Boudreauxs allege that at various times, the Browns have blocked the servitude on Lot A.

The Boudreauxs claim that the new ordinances were passed in the absence of proper notice to the public, and that the valid zoning classification for Lot A is C-l. They further urge that the appropriate zoning classification for a funeral home is C-2, and therefore the Rose Lynn Funeral Home was a prohibited use. According to the Boudreauxs, the zoning classification was unconstitutional 14because the new zoning map was created in violation of constitutional and statutory prerequisite procedural and jurisdictional requirements. It is alleged that adequate and timely notice was not given to the public; constitutional and statutory procedures were not followed; the classification of Lot A on the new zoning map constitutes illegal “spot” or “piece-meal” zoning and was unreasonable, arbitrary and discriminatory; and the ordinance was based on misrepresented and erroneous information.

The Boudreauxs allege that the defendants, including the Town of Lutcher, through Mayor Poche and Mr. Millet, violated the laws by: (1) allowing renovation work to be done on the former Pelican Homestead building in the absence of the issuance of a valid building permit; (2) approving an application for a building permit in violation of the zoning ordinances; failing to visibly display any building permit, in violation of the zoning ordinances; (4) failing to issue and/or approve a Certificate of Zoning Compliance.

They sought a declaratory judgment to declare that Lot A is zoned C-l; that April 2, 2002 Lutcher Zoning Ordinance, # 02-02, is unconstitutional, null and void; that the intended use of the property as a funeral home is in violation to the zoning ordinances; and that any certificate of zoning compliance be declared null and void. They sought to enjoin the Browns from operating a funeral home, and from hindering their servitude of passage, and petitioned the court to enjoin the Town of Lutcher defendants from issuing any certificate of zoning compliance to the Browns. The Boudreauxs sought a Writ of Mandamus ordering the Town of Lutcher to vacate the building permit issued to the Browns, to correct any violations of the zoning laws with respect to the property in question, to vacate any Certificate of Zoning Compliance that may have issued to the Browns, and to change the zoning map to show Lot A as being zoned C-l.

| sThe hearing on the Boudreaux petition was held May 29, 2003. At the hearing, Patricia Lemoine testified that she is the town clerk for the Town of Lutcher. She is the custodian of the town records, attends all the Board of Alderman meetings, and it is her responsibility to place notices in the official journal. The property at issue was formerly owned by I.C.I. Property and the building had been an office for Pelican Homestead. No funeral home had previously been operated at that location. A Notice of Public Hearing was published on March 14, 21, and 28, 2002, announcing a hearing set for April 2, 2002, to receive public comments on the proposed amendments to the zoning map Ordinance No. 02-03. The announcement declared that the public would have three days after the meeting, or until April 5, to submit written comments. No comments were received, either prior to or after the public meeting. Immediately after the [184]*184public hearing was adjourned, on April 2, the Board of Alderman held its meeting and adopted the new map. Mrs. Bou-dreaux had contacted her several times about the prospect of funeral home on Lot A. In 1999, Mrs. Boudreaux had attended a public meeting and discussed her petition about the funeral home, but did not submit it at that time. Ms. Lemoine received complaints from the Boudreauxs about work having begun on the building prior to the issuance of a building permit, at which time she contacted the Browns and told them to stop construction until the building permit was issued. The permit was in fact issued to the Browns in August, 2002, after which Mrs. Boudreaux complained that the permit was not posted in a visible place. A zoning compliance certificate was issued on February 18, 2003, at which time the building had been completed. According to the old town zoning map, the property in question had previously been zoned C-2.

Mrs. Boudreaux testified that in 1992, Mayor Poche told her that the property she wished to buy was part of a larger tract owned by I.C.I., and was 16zoned C-l. The Boudreauxs were able to have the property re-subdivided, and Lots B, C, and D were re-zoned R-l. In May 1999, as soon as she heard of the possibility that a funeral home would be placed, Mrs. Bou-dreaux circulated a petition and requested a public meeting, which was held in May, 1999. After the meeting, she called many times to request information on whether the funeral home would be built, and she was told they would let her know.

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Bluebook (online)
869 So. 2d 180, 3 La.App. 5 Cir. 1070, 2004 La. App. LEXIS 312, 2004 WL 324904, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/boudreaux-v-braun-investments-llc-lactapp-2004.