G. Levitsky & M. Levitsky h/w v. Wallingford-Swarthmore S.D.

CourtCommonwealth Court of Pennsylvania
DecidedApril 14, 2023
Docket1429 C.D. 2021
StatusUnpublished

This text of G. Levitsky & M. Levitsky h/w v. Wallingford-Swarthmore S.D. (G. Levitsky & M. Levitsky h/w v. Wallingford-Swarthmore S.D.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
G. Levitsky & M. Levitsky h/w v. Wallingford-Swarthmore S.D., (Pa. Ct. App. 2023).

Opinion

IN THE COMMONWEALTH COURT OF PENNSYLVANIA

George Levitsky and : Marcia Levitsky h/w, : Appellants : : v. : No. 1429 C.D. 2021 : Wallingford-Swarthmore School : District : Submitted: December 2, 2022

BEFORE: HONORABLE ANNE E. COVEY, Judge HONORABLE ELLEN CEISLER, Judge HONORABLE BONNIE BRIGANCE LEADBETTER, Senior Judge

OPINION NOT REPORTED

MEMORANDUM OPINION BY JUDGE CEISLER FILED: April 14, 2023

George Levitsky and Marcia Levitsky (the Levitskys) appeal from the November 15, 2021 order of the Court of Common Pleas of Delaware County (trial court), which denied the Levitskys’ petition seeking a permanent injunction against the Wallingford-Swarthmore School District (District). Because the trial court’s order denying injunctive relief does not meet the criteria required to be appealable as of right under Rule 311(a)(4)(ii) of the Rules of Appellate Procedure,1 this Court does not have jurisdiction to hear the Levitskys’ appeal, which is hereby quashed. I. Background The facts underlying this matter are largely undisputed. The Levitskys own a single-family residence on Copples Lane in the Township of Nether Providence

1 Rule 311(a)(4)(ii) relevantly provides that an order granting or denying an injunction is appealable as of right, unless the order was entered after trial but before entry of a final order, and the order does not enjoin conduct previously permitted or mandate conduct not previously mandated or permitted. Pa.R.A.P. 311(a)(4)(ii). (Township). Original Record (O.R.), Item No. 93, Finding of Fact (F.F.) No. 2. The Levitskys’ home is adjacent to King Field (the Field), an athletic field located at the Strath Haven Middle School (SHMS) and maintained by the District. O.R., Item No. 72, Ex. A-3. On October 25, 2017, the Levitskys filed an amended complaint against the District alleging that noise, lights, and debris from the Field constituted a private and public nuisance and a trespass against their interest.2 O.R., Item No. 12. On January 17, 2020, the Levitskys filed a petition for preliminary and permanent injunction, seeking an order that would include the following relief: (1) limiting the District’s use of the Field to no more than 200 hours per year and limiting athletic events to varsity football games; (2) prohibiting the Strath Haven High School (SHHS) marching band from practicing on the Field and requiring that the marching band sit in the Field’s “visitor” bleachers during football games; (3) restricting use of the Field’s “home” bleachers to the first four tiers or, alternatively, restricting all spectator seating to the Field’s “visitor” bleachers; (4) installing sound barriers to reduce the level of noise emanating from the Field to the limits established in Section 169-5 of the Township’s noise control ordinance (Noise Ordinance);3 (5) prohibiting or severely restricting the Field’s use for non-school groups and prohibiting their use of amplified music; (5) installing barriers to prevent access to the Field when not in use, and (6) adjusting the Field’s lighting equipment to eliminate glare on neighboring properties. O.R., Item No. 62. The Levitskys also requested that the District hire police officers to maintain order at the Field during

2 The Township was also named as a defendant in the amended complaint but dismissed as a party on February 7, 2018. O.R., Item No. 19.

3 Township of Nether Providence, Pa., Code § 169-5 (September 20, 2017). O.R., Item No. 90, Ex. D3.

2 evening football games and establish a patrol comprised of parents and District faculty to monitor the neighborhoods adjacent to the Field during those games. Id. The Levitskys withdrew their petition for preliminary injunction on October 12, 2020. O.R., Item No. 69. Thereafter, the Levitskys filed a petition for permanent injunction that essentially reiterated their prior request for relief. O.R., Item No. 72. The trial court conducted evidentiary hearings over the course of four days in May 2021. The Levitskys’ Evidence Mr. Levitsky testified that the Field did not have bleachers when he and Mrs. Levitsky purchased the land for their home in 1979. O.R., Item No. 88, Notes of Testimony (N.T.), 5/10/21, at 44. At that time, approximately 8-12 football games were played on the Field over the course of a year. Id. at 46. Between 1982 and 1984, the District installed lights on the Field, which consisted of 4 poles with 8-10 lights installed on each pole. Id. at 44-45. In 2009, the District installed 80-foot poles with 10-12 lights on each pole. Id. Mr. Levitsky believes that metal bleachers were added to the Field after the lights were installed. Id. at 46. The bleachers are 163 feet long, and approximately 40-50 feet high, with a two-story press box attached to one set of bleachers. Id. at 46-47. Mr. Levitsky stated that “[i]t’s daylight” when the Field lights are operating and he asserted that the lights operate even when no events are taking place. Id. at 47, 51. The District installed artificial turf on the Field in 2013. Id. at 50. Mr. Levitsky advised that activity on the Field “skyrocket[ed]” following installation of the artificial turf. Id. He estimated that events take place on the Field daily from 2:00-10:00 p.m. Id. In addition to light pollution created by use of the Field, Mr. Levitsky stated that, at times, the amplified sound from the Field and music from the marching band

3 causes his home to shake. Id. at 58-59. Mr. Levitsky testified that items from the Field, such as balls, rocks, and water bottles, are frequently thrown on his property. Id. at 60. He asserted that the District rents the Field to non-school groups, whose events are not monitored or supervised by the District. Id. at 63-64. Id. Mr. Levitsky advised that the noise and lights from the Field have had a detrimental effect on his and Mrs. Levitsky’s health. Id. at 75. The Levitskys keep a calendar on which they mark each day the lights are used on the Field. Id. at 71. Mr. Levitsky calculated that the Field lights were operated 150 times in 2019. Id. at 72. On cross-examination, Mr. Levitsky conceded that the Field lights are not operated during the summer months, and they are not operated every night during the school year. Id. at 106. Mr. Levitsky agreed that the District’s athletic events are exempt from the limits established in the Noise Ordinance and that, to his knowledge, the District’s use of the Field did not otherwise violate any Township ordinance or state law. Id. at 107, 116-17. He acknowledged that music performed by the marching band is not electronically amplified. Id. at 139. While Mr. Levitsky agreed that the District did not condone the behavior of individuals who threw rocks and bottles on the Levitskys’ property, he maintained that the District “gave them the platform to throw the stuff at my house.” Id. at 157-58. Mr. Levitsky acknowledged that many of his health issues existed before he moved to Copples Lane. Id. at 119-21. Mr. Levitsky also acknowledged that he chose to build his home 350 feet off Copples Lane on the rear section of his property. Id. at 118. Mrs. Levitsky testified that when she and Mr. Levitsky bought their property in 1979, the Field had wooden bleachers, which were visible from the yard. O.R., Item No. 89, N.T., 5/13/21, at 39. She stated that sound from the Field dramatically increased when the District installed metal bleachers. Id. at 54. Mrs. Levitsky

4 agreed during cross-examination that the marching band does not practice on the Field in January, February, or from April through July. Id. at 160-61. She also agreed that the Field lights are typically turned off by 10:00 p.m. Id. at 168. The Levitskys presented the live testimony of Marc Gramatges, Ph.D., a psychologist who evaluated the Levitskys on two occasions for the purpose of assessing the psychological impact of light and sound emanating from the Field. Id. at 211. Dr.

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G. Levitsky & M. Levitsky h/w v. Wallingford-Swarthmore S.D., Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/g-levitsky-m-levitsky-hw-v-wallingford-swarthmore-sd-pacommwct-2023.