City of San Antonio v. Congregation of the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word, Inc.

404 S.W.2d 333, 1966 Tex. App. LEXIS 2492
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedMarch 4, 1966
Docket3994
StatusPublished
Cited by12 cases

This text of 404 S.W.2d 333 (City of San Antonio v. Congregation of the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word, Inc.) 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 San Antonio v. Congregation of the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word, Inc., 404 S.W.2d 333, 1966 Tex. App. LEXIS 2492 (Tex. Ct. App. 1966).

Opinion

COLLINGS, Justice.

This is an appeal from a temporary injunction enjoining the State of Texq®, the State Highway Department, the State Highway Commissioners, and the City of San Antonio from taking action of any kind that might be construed as being the inception of an attempt by any of the defendants to exercise the power of eminent domain over designated land belonging to ap-pellee in San Antonio for highway purposes. The case is a sequel to the case of City of San Antonio et al. v. Congregation of the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word et al., 360 S.W.2d 580, (ref. n.r.e.), certificate denied 372 U.S. 967, 83 S.Ct. 1093, 10 L.Ed.2d 131.

Appellants urge points contending that the court erred in enjoining them (1) from taking any action in furtherance of the construction of a proposed northbound expressway across appellee’s lands in San Antonio, (2) from instituting any action designed to ultimately condemn appellee’s lands under the powers of eminent domain and (3) from taking any steps preliminary to the institution of an action or proceeding in eminent domain.

Appellee urges that the court properly granted the order temporarily enjoining the proposed condemnation proceedings, which appellee contends would be void; that the condemnation proceedings would be governed by Articles 3264 through 3271, Vernon’s Ann.Rev.Civ.St.; that Article 3265, which provides the manner in which the Commissioners shall determine the value of the condemnee’s property, is unconstitutional as applied to appellee because it does not allow for the special damages which will necessarily be sustained by appellee if its campus, church, convent and grounds are taken. Appellee urges Lone Star Gas Company v. City of Fort Worth, 128 Tex. 392, 98 S.W.2d 799, (Com., opinion approved by Sup. Ct.), and State v. Waco Independent School District, Tex.Civ.App., 364 S.W.2d 263, (ref. n.r.e. ), in support of its contention that the court properly granted a temporary injunction based upon the proposed condemnation proceedings.

It is well settled that the power of eminent domain is an inherent attribute of sovereignty and exists independently of the Constitution. It is held that the State in the exercise of its sovereign authority can take, damage or destroy property for public use subject to the right of the owner to recover adequate compensation. Texas Highway Department v. Weber, 147 Tex. 628, 219 S.W.2d 70, Vernon’s Ann.St.Const. Art. 1, § 17. It is further held, however, that an attempt or threatened attempt to take private property for public use may be restrained by injunction when the proceeding is for any reason void. Lone Star Gas Company v. City of Fort Worth, 128 Tex. 392, 98 S.W.2d 799.

This inherent power of eminent domain resting in the State as limited by the Constitution has been delegated by Legislative action to various subdivisions of the State. The delegation of such authority to the Highway Department was through Art. 6674w, V.A.C.S. and the delegation to the City of San Antonio, a home rule city, was through Article 1175, § 15. Article- 3264, 3265, and 3266 set out the procedure to be followed in condemnation cases by the State *335 and its political subdivisions which have been delegated the power of eminent domain.

Appellee contends in its pleadings and on appeal that the statutes upon which appellants rely in their attempt to take appel-lee’s property under the power of eminent domain are void as applied to appellee. Appellee contends that Article 3265 is unconstitutional in that it does not provide just compensation for the special damages which appellee will necessarily sustain, if appellants are permitted to exercise the power of eminent domain in taking land belonging to appellee for highway purposes.

In our opinion Article 3265 is not unconstitutional because of the alleged failure to provide just compensation for any special damages which might be suffered by appellee and the condemnation proceedings contemplated by appellants are not void. Appellee contends that Article 3265 as interpreted by the Waco Court of Civil Appeals in State v. Waco Independent School District, supra, provides only for the replacement value theory in public schools and not in private schools, and that the statute is therefore unconstitutional as applied to private schools, such as that operated by appellee. Appellee’s contention in this respect is stated in its pleadings as follows:

“The Court of Civil Appeals sitting at Waco, Texas, in the case of State v. Waco Independent School District, 364 SW2d 263 (writ refused, n. r. e.), has determined that the proper measure of damages when a school is condemned is ‘ * * * what is reasonably necessary to restore the remaining * * * land and facilities to the same or reasonably equal utility for high school purposes as that to which the (land) and facilities were reasonably utilized immediately pri- or to the taking in question.’ However, the said Court of Civil Appeals limited its decision to Public Schools only. Therefore, such interpretation of the statutes in question excludes private schools, and is arbitrary and violative of the due process and equal protection clauses of the U. S. Constitution, Amend. XIV. The statutes in question, therefore, do not apply equally to public and privately owned schools. The distinction is based solely upon ownership and denies to private schools the rights which are accorded to public schools under the same circumstances. In that particular, they are unconstitutional as denying to private schools, in general, and this Plaintiff in particular, the equal protection of the laws.”

The Waco Independent School District case was a proceeding brought by the State against the Independent School District to condemn part of the high school campus, including buildings, for highway purposes. The evidence indicated that the school district in order to continue normal operation was of necessity required to replace the buildings that the State had destroyed by taking. Such buildings and classrooms were necessary to provide facilities needed by the school. There was no way to do this and at the same time utilize the valuable improvements remaining on the 18.35 acres not taken, except by replacement. The County Court at Law of McLennon County entered judgment for the school district for the sum of $850,000.-00. Upon an appeal by the State, the judgment was affirmed. It was held by the Court of Civil Appeals in an opinion by Associate Justice Tirey that the proper measure of damages for the taking of part of the high school campus and buildings for highway purposes was the amount reasonably necessary to restore the remaining land and facilities to the same, or reasonably equal utility for high school purposes to that which the taken and remaining land and facilities had immediately prior to the taking. The decision was limited in its application to a public school because a public school only was involved.

*336

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Bluebook (online)
404 S.W.2d 333, 1966 Tex. App. LEXIS 2492, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/city-of-san-antonio-v-congregation-of-the-sisters-of-charity-of-the-texapp-1966.