City of Memphis v. Hastings

113 Tenn. 142
CourtTennessee Supreme Court
DecidedApril 15, 1904
StatusPublished
Cited by16 cases

This text of 113 Tenn. 142 (City of Memphis v. Hastings) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Tennessee Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
City of Memphis v. Hastings, 113 Tenn. 142 (Tenn. 1904).

Opinion

Mr. Justice McAlister

delivered the opinion of the Court.

This record presents a petition exhibited in the circuit court of Shelby county, asking the condemnation of a certain strip of land, nine hundred feet long and fifty feet wide, belonging to the defendant, for the purpose of [146]*146extending a boulevard along tbe west side of Trezevant avenue.

It is alleged.therein that under and by- virtue of chapter 142, p. 250, of the Acts of 1899, the city of Memphis is empowered to purchase by private negotiation-or acquire by condemnation a parkway for the purpose of connecting the city with any parks that might be established, or for the purpose of connecting the parks with each other.

It is further alleged that, for the purpose of carrying out the powers conferred by said act, the city was authorized to establish by ordinance a park commission, composed of three members, and that Robert Galloway, L. B. McFarland, and J. R. Godwin had been legally elected and now constitute said park commission. It is further alleged that on the 5th of November, 1903, an ordinance was passed authorizing and directing the park commissioners to obtain, establish, and construct a system of parkways in and around the city of Memphis; that under and by virtue of this ordinance the park commission did on the 9th day of January, 1904, establish said parkway so as to begin at Overton Park, and run thence south along and with Trezevant avenue to a point 700 feet south of the right of way of the Southern Railway Company, thence west to Cooper avenue, thence south along Cooper avenue to Lamar boulevard, and thence in a westerly and southwesterly direction to Kerr avenue, and along and with Kerr avenue to Riverside Park and the Mississippi river; said parkway to be [147]*147200 feet in width as far south as Union, avenue, and for the balance of the distance to average 150 feet in width.

It is then alleged that, in order to construct this parkway or boulevard, a certain portion of the property of defendant is required, and that the object of this petition is to acquire the same by condemnation proceedings.

The prayer of the petition is that the city of Memphis be decreed an easement or right of way to the strip of land described, and that the court issue its. writ of inquiry of damages to the sheriff, commanding him to summon a jury, to be named by the court, to inquire into and assess the damages of the defendant by reason of the taking of the strip of land described.

The defendant resisted the condemnation of said land, and in her answer relied upon the following grounds, viz.:

(1) Because the city of Memphis is attempting to' condemn property for public uses situated outside of its corporate limits, and that any act authorizing the exercise of the power to condemn land lying wholly without its corporate limits is unconstitutional and void.

(2) That the'said chapter 142, p. 250, of the Acts of 1899, is in violation of article 1, section 21, of the constitution of Tennessee, and is also in violation of the fourteenth amendment of the constitution of the United States, because it does not provide for just compensation to be paid to the owner of the property sought to be condemned, and that the mode and manner of ascertaining [148]*148such compensation, and enforcing the same, is not fixed and established in said act.

(3) That it violates article 2, section 17, of the constitution of Tennessee, because the body of the act provides for subject-matters outside of the title, and not in any sense germane to the subject suggested by it.

The cause was heard at the March term, 1904, by the Honorable J. P. Young, who was of opinion that the act of 1899 was unconstitutional, because the subjects of the act are not embraced in the title, and further that said act makes no provision for compensating the owners of property so condemned for a park boulevard, and further that such a boulevard connecting the parks is a public convenience, and not a public necessity.

The court thereupon dismissed the petition. The city appealed, and has assigned errors.

Chapter 142, pp. 250-252, Acts 1899, section 1, provides as follows: . . .

“The parks or lands to be used for park purposes may be purchased either by private negotiation or by condemnation, as. hereinbefore provided, as may be determined by the legislative council. If the parks or land for park purposes be purchased by private negotiation, the negotiation shall be conducted by such member or members of the legislative council as shall be designated by said council, but no purchase shall be effected until the same has the approval of the majority of the legislative council. And said parks or land for park purposes may be purchased either within or without the limits of such [149]*149taxing districts or cities, but not more than ten miles, from the nearest point on the limits of such taxing districts or cities, as such limits may be at the time of such purchase.”

Section 2:

“Any such taxing district or city may condemn parks or land for park purposes under the power of eminent domain and such taxing districts and cities are hereby expressly given the power to condemn for park purposes, the yards, switches, tracks, the depot and property of any character, of any railroad company and also the property of any manufacturing establishment and also the property of any other person or corporation either within or without the limits of said taxing district or city, but not over ten miles beyond the nearest point in said limits as such limits may be at the time of such condemnation, and the proceedings for the exercise of this power of condemnation shall be the same as that now' provided by law for the taking of private property for public uses.”

Section 3:

“That in order to raise the means necessary to purchase or condemn parks or land for park purposes, such taxing districts or cities are hereby authorized and empowered to issue their coupon bonds to any amount not exceeding two hundred and fifty thousand dollars, bearing a rate of interest not exceeding five per cent maturing at such time, callable in such manner as the legisla[150]*150tive council may determine and payable in lawful money of the United States of America,” etc.

Section 4:

“That such taxing district or city is authorized and empowered to levy a special park tax only so long as said bonds shall.remain outstanding,” etc.

Section 5:

“That such taxing district or city shall have the power to purchase by private negotiation or acquire by condemnation a park or parkways either running from said taxing district or city to any such park, or running between and connecting such parks; and such taxing district or city may.purchase or condemn such parkways either within or without the limits of such taxing district or city, but in no case more than ten miles beyond the nearest point of the limits of such taxing district or city as the same may be at the date of such purchase or condemnation; and the proceeds of the bonds aforesaid may be used for improving or maintaining such park; ways.”

Section 6 provides for the creation of a park commission by the legislative council of such taxing district, to be composed of three members, who shall be elected by said legislative council.

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

Related

State Ex Rel. Anderson v. City of Knoxville
144 S.W.2d 758 (Tennessee Supreme Court, 1940)
Tennessee Min. & Mfg. Co. v. Anderson County
121 S.W.2d 543 (Tennessee Supreme Court, 1938)
State Ex Rel. v. Oliver
35 S.W.2d 396 (Tennessee Supreme Court, 1931)
Town of Madisonville v. Cagle
21 S.W.2d 385 (Tennessee Supreme Court, 1929)
President of Middlebury College v. Central Power Corp.
143 A. 384 (Supreme Court of Vermont, 1928)
Beadle v. the Town of Crossville
7 S.W.2d 992 (Tennessee Supreme Court, 1928)
Reams v. Board of Mayor Aldermen
291 S.W. 1067 (Tennessee Supreme Court, 1927)
Town of Pulaski v. Ballentine
284 S.W. 370 (Tennessee Supreme Court, 1925)
City of Chattanooga v. State
151 Tenn. 691 (Tennessee Supreme Court, 1924)
Haase v. City of Memphis
149 Tenn. 235 (Tennessee Supreme Court, 1923)
State ex rel. McLeod v. District Court
215 P. 240 (Montana Supreme Court, 1923)
Bragg v. Yeargin
145 Tenn. 643 (Tennessee Supreme Court, 1921)
State v. Cumberland Club
136 Tenn. 84 (Tennessee Supreme Court, 1916)
Southern Railway Co. v. City of Memphis
126 Tenn. 267 (Tennessee Supreme Court, 1912)
Cunningham v. Memphis Railroad Terminal Co.
126 Tenn. 343 (Tennessee Supreme Court, 1912)
Malone v. Williams
118 Tenn. 390 (Tennessee Supreme Court, 1907)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
113 Tenn. 142, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/city-of-memphis-v-hastings-tenn-1904.