Cotz v. Gutierrez-Scaccetti

CourtDistrict Court, D. New Jersey
DecidedMarch 18, 2020
Docket3:19-cv-22075
StatusUnknown

This text of Cotz v. Gutierrez-Scaccetti (Cotz v. Gutierrez-Scaccetti) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. New Jersey primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Cotz v. Gutierrez-Scaccetti, (D.N.J. 2020).

Opinion

NOT FOR PUBLICATION

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT DISTRICT OF NEW JERSEY

LYDIA COTZ,

Plaintiff, Civil Action No. 19-22075 (MAS) (ZNQ) v.

DIANE GUTIERREZ-SCACCETTI, in MEMORANDUM OPINION her official capacity as Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Transportation,

Defendant.

SHIPP, District Judge This matter comes before the Court upon Plaintiff Lydia Cotz’s (“Plaintiff”) Motion for a Temporary Restraining Order (“TRO”) pursuant to Rule 65 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. (ECF No. 2.) Defendant Diane Gutierrez-Scaccetti (“Defendant”), in her official capacity as Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Transportation (“NJDOT”), opposed (ECF No. 7), and Plaintiff replied (ECF No. 8). The Court held a telephone conference on January 10, 2020 and set a deadline of January 17, 2020 for additional briefing. (ECF No. 9.) Plaintiff submitted correspondence on January 15, 2020 (ECF No. 12) requesting an extension of the briefing deadline to January 23, 2020, which Defendant opposed (ECF No. 13). On January 17, 2020, the Court granted Plaintiff’s request. (ECF No. 14.) On January 24, 2020, Plaintiff submitted correspondence requesting a further extension to January 30, 2020. (ECF No. 15.) On February 2, 2020, ten days after the deadline passed, Plaintiff submitted a letter brief. (ECF No. 16.) Plaintiff submitted further correspondence on February 26, 2020. (ECF No. 18.)1 The Court has carefully considered the parties’ submissions and decides the matter without oral argument pursuant to Local Civil Rule 78.1. For the reasons set forth below, Plaintiff’s Motion for a Temporary Restraining Order is denied, and Plaintiff’s Complaint is dismissed without prejudice. I. BACKGROUND

In or around July 2013, Plaintiff became the owner of real property located at 306 Route 173 in Stewartsville, New Jersey (the “Property”). (Compl. *2, ECF No. 1.)2 Since 1996, the Property has been on the National Register of Historic Places (the “National Register”). (Id.) The Property is an “irregularly shaped parcel of nearly [eight] acres, bordered to the north by State Route 173 and to the south and east by the Pohatcong Creek.” (Id.) Towards the eastern terminus of the Property, the “parcel tapers to a point where State Route 173 crosses the Pohatcong Creek” on a bridge that was originally built in 1915. (Id.) The bridge was constructed on land acquired by Warren County, New Jersey, pursuant to a grant (the “Grant”) from one of Plaintiff’s predecessors in title. (Id. at *3.)

In or around 2010, NJDOT determined that the bridge was structurally deficient and no longer complied with modern safety standards, thus necessitating its replacement (the “Project”). (Id. at *4; see also Certification of Vandna Patel (“Patel Cert.”) ¶ 3, Def.’s Opp’n Br. Ex. 1, ECF

1 Because Plaintiff’s January 24, 2020 correspondence, February 2, 2020 letter brief, and February 26, 2020 correspondence were submitted after the briefing deadline, they were not considered by the Court.

2 Because the pages of the Complaint were not individually numbered, the Court references the page numbers as they appear in the ECF header and denotes such page references with an asterisk. No. 7-1.) The Project would involve the extension of a guiderail3 to comport with modern safety standards, specifically the 2015 NJDOT Roadway Design Manual. (Compl. *5; Patel Cert. ¶ 4.) The extension of the guiderail would also require the removal of “at least one majestic black walnut tree” which is approximately 100 years old. (Compl. *6.) Because of the Grant, as Plaintiff concedes, the Project would not require a taking by NJDOT. (Id. at *5.)

The initial design work on the Project was federally funded by the Federal Highway Administration (“FHWA”). (Patel Cert. ¶ 8.) NJDOT consulted with the New Jersey State Historic Preservation Office (“SHPO”) “to determine [the Project’s] area of potential effect” and to identify and assess the impact of the Project on any properties listed on the National Register. (Id. ¶ 9.) The FHWA concluded that the Project would “adversely affect” the Property and “considered alternatives to avoid or minimize the adverse effects [but] found they were not feasible.” (Id. ¶¶ 11–12.) The FHWA, SHPO, and NJDOT subsequently developed a plan to attempt to mitigate the adverse effects of the Project. (Id. ¶ 13.) Plaintiff first learned of the Project in or around 2014 when NJDOT representatives began

staking out the boundaries of the Grant. (Compl. *6.) Thereafter, Plaintiff and her husband objected to the Project and held a series of meetings with an NJDOT project manager and other NJDOT representatives. (Id. at *6–7.) In or around June 2018, NJDOT learned that “the funding mechanism used to fund the design portion of the [P]roject was not allowable by the FHWA.” (Patel Cert. ¶ 25.) NJDOT, accordingly, decided to “proceed with the [P]roject as fully State[-]funded.”4 (Id.) Upon

3 A “guiderail” is a “barrier whose primary function is to prevent penetration and safely redirect an errant vehicle away from a roadside or median hazard.” (Patel Cert. ¶ 5.)

4 NJDOT concedes, however, that “the design phase of the [P]roject” was financed with federal funds. (Patel Cert. ¶ 25.) discovering that it had utilized an impermissible funding mechanism, NJDOT repaid FHWA the $667,643.83 incurred during the design phase of the Project. (Id.) In or around November 2018, NJDOT hired a contractor to carry out the Project. (Id. ¶ 27.) In January 2019, NJDOT submitted “an application for [P]roject authorization” to SHPO, which included the installation of an extended guiderail and tree removal. (Id. ¶ 29.) When the NJDOT

subcontractor attempted to remove the trees later that month, it was obstructed by Plaintiff, who entered the Project site, “yell[ed] at the contractor and call[ed] the Greenwich police.” (Id. ¶ 30.) Following this incident, NJDOT considered an alternative design for the bridge, where the flared end of the guiderail would be replaced by a crash cushion.5 (Id.) In February 2019, SHPO indicated that it preferred the original design with the flared guiderail because it was “less obtrusive within this historic setting” but “did not oppose the use of the crash cushion” if Plaintiff and her husband preferred that option. (Id.) On or about February 6, 2019, NJDOT held a public forum and invited members of the public to “review exhibits of the [P]roject, ask questions[,] and discuss any concerns with NJDOT

representatives and the contractor.” (Id. ¶ 32.) On or about April 22, 2019, NJDOT presented the alternative design option to Plaintiff and her husband, but they rejected it. (Id. ¶¶ 33–34.) On or about August 9, 2019, SHPO determined that “NJDOT’s application for [P]roject authorization was technically complete and professionally sufficient.” (Id. ¶ 36.) SHPO further stated that the Project “met the Secretary of the Interior’s [s]tandards for [r]ehabilitation and . . . did not constitute an encroachment” on the Property. (Id. ¶ 38.)

5 “A ‘crash cushion’ is a type of traffic barrier that can be used to shield obstructions[,] such as overhead sign supports, bridge piers, bridge abutments, ends of retaining walls, bridge parapets, bridge railings[,] and longitudinal barriers. Stated differently, a crash cushion is a type of an end treatment on a guiderail that enhances public safety.” (Patel Cert. ¶ 31.) On or about December 12, 2019, NJDOT engaged a contractor to remove trees from the Project area. (Id. ¶ 40.) Once again, Plaintiff and her husband obstructed the work; Plaintiff’s husband physically stood in front of one of the trees to prevent its removal.

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Cotz v. Gutierrez-Scaccetti, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/cotz-v-gutierrez-scaccetti-njd-2020.