Dolomite Products Co. v. Kipers

39 Misc. 2d 627, 241 N.Y.S.2d 748, 1963 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 1816
CourtNew York Supreme Court
DecidedJuly 10, 1963
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 39 Misc. 2d 627 (Dolomite Products Co. v. Kipers) 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
Dolomite Products Co. v. Kipers, 39 Misc. 2d 627, 241 N.Y.S.2d 748, 1963 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 1816 (N.Y. Super. Ct. 1963).

Opinion

Domenick L. Gabrielli, J.

The petitioner is and has been engaged in the business of stone quarrying since its incorporation in 19'20. It further appears that since 1925, when it acquired the premises in question, the petitioner had conducted the business of crushing, blasting, quarrying and preparing for market, stone, rock and other substances. It is conceded that these operations were conducted on one parcel of the entire premises involved since the time the whole of the premises were purchased in 1925; but, there is serious dispute as to whether these operations had been conducted on the balance of the land involved.

In 1948, the respondent, Town of Grates, adopted a Zoning Ordinance. It is undisputed that the first above-mentioned parcel and the parcel described in Exhibit “B” were then included in the “ Industrial E ” zone and that a second parcel was then made a part of the “ Residential ” zone.

The Zoning Ordinance provided, in part, that it was permissible, in such Industrial “ E ” District to engage in the business of “ rock crushing, sand and gravel pit.” (§ 60, subd. 19); as well as “any industrial process emitting dust, odor, gas, fumes, noise or vibration when comparable in character to or not in aggregate amount exceeding that of any use specified above in this subdivision” (§ 60, subd. 22). It is apparent that the operations of the petitioner, insofar as they relate to the land contained in the Industrial “E” zone, were permissible under the provisions of the Zoning Ordinance of 1948.

In addition it is clear, and tacitly admitted, that the operations of the petitioner on the lands owned by it in the Industrial “ E ” District to the north of the New York Central Railroad lands had been consistently conducted in the same fashion as at the time of the application, since 1925; and, therefore, were in the nature of a nonconforming use. From the records before the court, there can be no doubt about this.

[629]*629In February of 1950, the respondents proceeded to enact an Excavations Ordinance which required an applicant to obtain a permit and approval to conduct soil-stripping, blasting and excavation work.

Sometime prior to January 25, 1963, the respondents served a “ stop-work order ” upon the petitioner, directing it to cease quarrying operations on lands south of the New York Central Railroad altogether, because of its failure to obtain an excavation permit. On January 25, 1963, the petitioner (without conceding the validity of this ordinance) simultaneously made two applications for excavation permits, one for each of the two parcels involved.

The applications were not approved by the respondents. There is no evidence of any reason therefor nor what was considered by the respondents in not approving the applications. The record before the court in this regard is barren of any facts, which would support the failure to approve the applications.

The petitioner contends (1) that the Excavations Ordinance is invalid in that the notice of hearing regarding the adoption of the ordinance was improperly published and that (2) in any event, even if the ordinance is declared to be valid it had been conducting its operations prior to the enactment of either the Zoning Ordinance or the Excavations Ordinance and hence was entitled to the protection of a nonconforming use.

The respondents claim that (1) both of the premises described in Exhibits “ B ” and “ C ” of the petition are subject to the provisions of the Excavations Ordinance and that (2) these premises were never used for quarrying purposes, are not a part of an entire tract, and in fact these premises were always used for farming and nursery purposes by petitioner’s tenants.

The petitioner seeks an order directing the cancellation and rescission of the ‘ ‘ stop-work order ’ ’ and for a direction that the applications for excavation permits be approved and granted.

We shall first direct our attention to the claimed invalidity of the enactment of the Excavations Ordinance. The petitioner contends that the notice of public hearing prior to its adoption was improper and did not meet the requirements of the Town Law (§ 133), and in particular that the notice of hearing did not have included therein, the whole of the proposed ordinance.

It is conceded that the whole of the proposed (and subsequently adopted) ordinance was not published. The records reveal that the published notice of hearing in addition to indicating [630]*630the time and place thereof, stated that the proposed ordinance is intended to regulate excavations, the operation of sand and gravel pits, stone quarries, stripping of top soil, and other uses mentioned in said proposed ordinance * * * A copy of said proposed ordinance is on file in the Town Clerk’s Office of the Town of Grates where the same may be inspected and read by any person or persons interested therein ”,

Following the public hearing as set forth in the notice, the ordinance in question was adopted on February 13, 1950 and on February 14, a notice was duly published to the effect that it had been adopted and passed and that “ The object of said ordinance is to regulate the construction on, removal of materials from, filling up, draining, cleaning, operating and using any lands or other premises for sand or gravel pits, stone quarries, stripping of top soil, or for other excavation purposes, and prohibiting the use of any lands or other premises for the aforesaid purposes which do not comply with such regulations. A copy of said ordinance is on file in the Town Clerk’s Office of the Town of Oates, New York, where the same can be read and examined by any person interested in the same.”

The foregoing language used in the notice of hearing and the published notice of adoption of the ordinance becomes important because of the provisions of chapter 686 of the Laws of 1934 which provide as follows: “ Any law to the contrary notwithstanding, it shall be sufficient in the case of any town in Monroe county which is or may be required or permitted by statute to publish any ordinance which such town is or may he authorised hy la/w to adopt in one or more newspapers so as to make such ordinance effectual, to publish in such newspaper or newspaper's a summary describing the subject of such ordinance and a notice stating that the whole of such ordinance is on file with the town clerk of such town, provided that a copy of such ordinance is kept on file with the town clerk during the period of such publication in lieu of publishing such ordinance in full in such newspaper or newspapers. Nothing herein contained shall dispense with any posting of such ordinances which is or may be required or permitted by law.” (Italics mine.)

This court, therefore, holds that the notice of hearing and thereafter, the notice of the adoption of the ordinance were duly published, and, in those respects, the ordinance whs duly adopted.

There is one further reason for overruling the petitioner’s objection to the method of adoption of this ordinance.

It would here be proper to point out that at the time of the public hearing prior to the adoption of the Excavations Ordi[631]*631nance, that the persons interested in quarrying appeared at the hearing and that the attorney for the petitioner further communicated with the respondents to the effect that‘1 on behalf of Dolomite Products Company, we wish to enter our objection to the passage of this ordinance.”

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Bluebook (online)
39 Misc. 2d 627, 241 N.Y.S.2d 748, 1963 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 1816, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/dolomite-products-co-v-kipers-nysupct-1963.