City of Dallas v. Shackelford

200 S.W.2d 869, 1946 Tex. App. LEXIS 645
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedNovember 15, 1946
DocketNo. 13742
StatusPublished
Cited by14 cases

This text of 200 S.W.2d 869 (City of Dallas v. Shackelford) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
City of Dallas v. Shackelford, 200 S.W.2d 869, 1946 Tex. App. LEXIS 645 (Tex. Ct. App. 1946).

Opinion

LOONEY, Justice.

This is a condemnation proceedings in which the City of Dallas is seeking to condemn the whole of a parcel of land (four adjacent lots) owned by C. M. Shackelford, to be used in connection with other property for the extension and maintenance of a municipal public market. The record discloses that the prescribed statutory procedure was pursued; that the owner, being dissatisfied with the amount of damages awarded by the Commissioners, appealed to the County Court at Law, No. 1, Dallas County. C. M. Shackelford having died during the pendency of the case in County Court, his widow, Mrs. Maude Shackelford, individually and as independent executrix of the will of her husband, also a daughter, Frances Shackelford Ren-fro, joined by her husband, V. Renfro (owners of the land after death of Mr. Shackel-ford), were made parties and prosecúled the appeal. The Mercantile National Bank of Dallas was permitted to intervene and set up an indebtedness and lien against the property. Abraham Rutchik, although [870]*870mentioned in the preliminary proceedings as owner, or at least joint owner with Shack-elford of the property, made no claim to any interest in same. The court submitted the case to the jury on only one issue, that is, asked the jury to find from a preponderance of the evidence the reasonable market value of the property on January 4, 1945, the date it is conceded the property was taken.

The city excepted to the charge on the ground that it permitted recovery of any increase in value of the land attributable to the mere location of the market in the area which included appellees' property; it being contended that on, or about, December 10, 1941, the City of Dallas adopted a resolution to the effect that it would be necessary to take the property in question for the establishment and extension of the public market in contemplation. In this connection, appellant city requested the court in writing to instruct the jury as follows: “Since the property under condemnation is a part of the original designated market site, you are instructed that in your answer to special issue No. 1, you shall not take into consideration any increase in market value, if any, which may have accrued to defendants’ land due to the location of the public market on such designated site.” (pp. 30, 31 tr.)

The court overruled appellant’s exception to the charge and refused the requested instruction, to which appellant excepted. In answer to the issue submitted, the jury found that the reasonable market value of the land in question, on or about January 4, 1945, was $15,500. Based upon this verdict, the court rendered judgment in favor of appellees for the sum of $15,500; vested title to the property involved in appellant, and properly disposed of the interest of the Mercantile National Bank set up in its plea of intervention. The city excepted to the judgment, gave notice of and perfected this appeal. The questions hereinafter discussed are properly before us for adjudication.

Appellant urges three points, 1, 2 and 3, all based upon the alleged error of the court in overruling appellant’s exception to the charge as given and in refusing its requested instruction. These points are grouped in appellant’s brief; based thereon, contends that in determining the market value of the property in question as of the date of the deposit by condemnor (January 4, 1945), there should have been excluded from the market value, as of that date, any increase or enhancement brought to the property by reason of condemnor’s declaration as to the desirability and necessity of appropriating the property in the area designated for the establishment and extension of the public market (in which was included the property involved) ; insisting that the owners are adequately and legally compensated by the market value as it would have existed, unaffected by the resolution adopted declaring the public necessity of taking the property within the area designated and the subsequent acquisition of a part of the property and the location of a market shed thereon (all of which will later appear in the facts).

Appellant cites quite an array of Federal and State cases where the rule for measuring the owner’s damages as contended by appellant, was applied; among others, calls attention to a lengthy annotation found in 147 A.L.R. p. 66 et seq. At page 68 of this annotation, it is stated that “Without at this point attempting to explain or reconcile the conflicting results reached in the numerous cases considering the question, it may here be stated that the great weight of authority, as shown by the results actually reached in the following cases, denies to the owner the right to recover an increase or enhancement, due to the proposed improvement, in the value of the land taken.” This is followed by a lengthy citation of State and Federal cases. However, at page 70, under the heading of “Recovery Allowed”, the annotator states that “In a comparatively small group of cases the right to recover for the enhanced value of land taken is accorded to the owner without qualification or condition. * * Under the above heading, two Texas cases are cited. Allen v. Missouri K. & T. R. Co., Tex.Civ.App., 1894, 25 S.W. 826; and Panhandle & G. R. Co. v. Kirby, 42 Tex.Civ.App. 340, 94 S.W. 173. These cases, in our opinion, are not out of line with the general rule, because the facts [871]*871involved did not call for its application. We do not think any Texas cases can be found that refused to apply the general rule where the facts warranted its application. In the Allen case mentioned, the railway company sought to condemn the whole of a block of land in the City of Houston for depot purposes. At the time of the condemnation the railroad had not reached the city, although its route had been designated; but the evidence fails to show that, prior to the condemnation proceedings, the railroad had designated any location for a depot site; hence, the block of land in question, in common with other adjacent lands, had already been enhanced somewhat in value by reason of the designation of the route. The other case mentioned is equally irrelevant.

The circumstances under which the owner is denied the right to recover the increase or enhancement in value of his land sought to be condemned, due to proposed public improvement, are revealed by the following excerpts from adjudicated cases. In United States v. Certain Lands in Town of Narragansett, C. C., 180 F. 260, 261 (cited and highly commended by the appellant), among other things the court said: “ * * * where, from the nature of the work, it is evident, from the moment of the passage of the legislation authorizing it (in the instant case, the passage of the resolution by the City Council), that the land in question will necessarily be required for the public improvement. Where, from the inception of the public improvement, it is known with practical certainty that the land will be required for the public project, this in itself negatives any supposed advantages which might accrue to the land held in private ownership by reason of its adjacency to the grounds of a public Capitol, park, or like improvement. If from the outset it is known that the lands must be taken for the public purpose, it is unsound to base their valuation upon any supposed advantages arising from their continuance in private hands as lands adjacent to public grounds."

The leading Texas case on this subject is City of El Paso v. Coffin, 40 Tex.Civ.App. 54, 88 S.W. 502, 505, opinion by Chief Justice James (Fourth District), application for writ dismissed.

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Bluebook (online)
200 S.W.2d 869, 1946 Tex. App. LEXIS 645, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/city-of-dallas-v-shackelford-texapp-1946.