County of Franklin v. Connelie

95 Misc. 2d 189, 408 N.Y.S.2d 174, 1978 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 2402
CourtNew York Supreme Court
DecidedMay 24, 1978
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 95 Misc. 2d 189 (County of Franklin v. Connelie) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New York Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
County of Franklin v. Connelie, 95 Misc. 2d 189, 408 N.Y.S.2d 174, 1978 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 2402 (N.Y. Super. Ct. 1978).

Opinion

OPINION OF THE COURT

Robert F. Doran, J.

The issue in this proceeding is whether the New York State Police Troop "B” Headquarters shall be relocated from the Village of Malone, County of Franklin, to Ray Brook, New York, which is in the Town of North Elba, County of Essex. A brief history of the background of the proposed relocation and of the legal proceedings so far will contribute to an understanding of this decision involving an order to show cause brought by the defendants.

In 1964, a process was begun for a realignment of the New York State Police Administrative Facilities across the State to ensure more efficient service to the residents of the State of New York. As part of this process, a new administrative facility to house the Headquarters of Troop "B” was proposed to be built in Ray Brook, New York, which is within the boundaries of the Adirondack Park. The estimated cost of the new headquarters is $3.8 million. The area covered by Troop "B” includes St. Lawrence, Clinton, Franklin and Essex Counties and the northern part of Hamilton County.

In order to obtain the necessary approvals for the construction of the new headquarters, the Division of State Police was confronted with frontiers not heretofore encountered in the establishment of a headquarters facility, i.e., the Adirondack Park Agency provisions contained in sections 800 through 819 of the Executive Law and the provisions of the State Environmental Quality Review Act found in ECL 8-0101 through 8-0117.

Pursuant to section 213 of the Executive Law, the Superintendent of State Police heretofore had rather unbridled authority to establish headquarters in whatever localities he deemed suitable, subject only to an appropriation being made and title to the real property involved being approved by the Attorney-General.

Prior to 1977, numerous unsuccessful attempts had been made by the Division of State Police to have the Headquarters of Troop "B” relocated to Ray Brook. Then, within the budget year of 1977, the Division of the Budget approved the reloca[194]*194tion, and the recommendation was supported by the Governor and affirmed by the Legislature. The sum of $3.8 million was provided to design and construct the new facility.

One of the stated purposes of the new facility is that it initially be used as a communications and security center for the 1980 Olympics and subsequently as Troop "B” Headquarters. It is obvious from the papers submitted on the order to show cause before me that the Division of State Police and the Office of General Services resisted the new frontiers set before them by the new Adirondack Park Agency and State Environmental Quality Review Act provisions. Indeed, when the Adirondack Park Agency hearing was finally held, counsel for the Division of State Police stated for the record that the division would not concede that the Adirondack Park Agency had any jurisdiction to review the proposed relocation and proposed new headquarters.

The court could well take judicial notice of the fact that the Division of State Police is not the only governmental agency, private citizen or private corporation which has shown resistance to the new frontiers set before the people of the State of New York by these two new laws passed by the Legislature and signed by the Governor. However, whatever one’s personal feelings — and there are strong ones both pro and con— this court and any court that reviews this matter subsequently has to take these new laws at face value, interpret them and extract from them the Legislature’s full intent. Like them or not, these laws have been enacted, and only the Legislature and the Governor can rend asunder what they have joined together so far.

The gravamen of the County of Franklin’s complaint is that there was an illegal failure to comply fully with the State Environmental Quality Review Act and Adirondack Park Agency provisions.

For example, the plaintiif, the County of Franklin, alleges that it was denied full party status in the Adirondack Park Agency hearing and that the initial hearings were held during a blinding snowstorm, which prevented the attendance of anyone from Franklin County. The County of Franklin alleges that compliance with the State Environmental Quality Review Act and with the Adirondack Park Agency was lacking in several important aspects and that the Adirondack Park Agency decision was fraught with improprieties. The county points out, for example, that the Adirondack Park Agency was [195]*195at the end in such a hurry to render its decision that a clairvoyant press-release writer apparently had the decision of approval two days before the Adirondack Park Agency actually met to approve the project. One can well surmise that there was great pressure emanating from many sources to speed up the Adirondack Park Agency review process, out of concern that lest the project started early in 1978, it would not be completed in time for the 1980 Olympics. However, it cannot be gainsaid that if illegal and improper shortcuts were taken which trampled on the legitimate rights of proper parties, then the Adirondack Park Agency proceeding should be annulled and vacated and a new hearing ordered that will properly serve the ends of justice and give full meaning to the intent envisioned by the Legislature when it passed the Adirondack Park Agency and State Environmental Quality Review Act provisions.

As to the legal proceedings to date, the County of Franklin, after the Adirondack Park Agency issued its order and agency determination approving the project on March 3, 1978, commenced the instant action by service of a summons on March 27, 1978. A motion for a preliminary injunction was instituted on March 31, 1978 by order to show cause signed by the Honorable Norman L. Harvey, Supreme Court Justice. The order to show cause included a temporary restraining order, pending the hearing of the motion, directing the defendants not to commence or proceed with the construction of the proposed new headquarters. Oral argument on the motion for preliminary injunction and on the defendants’ cross motion to dismiss the fourth cause of action was heard by the Honorable James Gibson, Supreme Court Justice, on April 6, 1978. From the Bench, Justice Gibson granted the plaintiffs motion for a preliminary injunction and denied the defendants’ cross motion. It is alleged by the plaintiff that during oral argument before Justice Gibson, the issue of the plaintiffs standing to sue was thoroughly argued, and indeed, the brief that had been submitted to Justice Gibson thoroughly covered the issue.

The defendants appealed the granting of the preliminary injunction. The County of Franklin moved pursuant to CPLR 5519 (subd [c]) to vacate the statutory stay that went into effect on the filing of the appeal. By decision dated April 19, 1978, the Appellate Division, Third Department, denied the motion by a divided court (4-1, Justice Main dissenting). The [196]*196effect of the statutory stay of the preliminary injunction is that the defendants have been allowed to proceed with the construction of the new headquarters building in Ray Brook. It is the court’s understanding that construction is well under way.

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Bluebook (online)
95 Misc. 2d 189, 408 N.Y.S.2d 174, 1978 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 2402, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/county-of-franklin-v-connelie-nysupct-1978.