Lott, Et Vir v. City of Orlando

196 So. 313, 142 Fla. 338
CourtSupreme Court of Florida
DecidedSeptember 26, 1939
StatusPublished
Cited by24 cases

This text of 196 So. 313 (Lott, Et Vir v. City of Orlando) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Florida primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Lott, Et Vir v. City of Orlando, 196 So. 313, 142 Fla. 338 (Fla. 1939).

Opinions

Chapman, J.

On the 13th day of September, 1938, Lucile H. Lott filed her bill of complaint in the Circuit Court of Orange County, 'Florida, and alleged that she owned real property, both homestead and non' homestead, situated in the City of Orlando, Florida, and paid taxes thereon to the City of Orlando to help defray its said operating expenses; 'that the City Council, under Chapter 17981, Laws of Florida, Acts of 1937, determined that unsanitary and unsafe dwelling accommodations existed in the City of Orlando and families of low income could not afford to pay the existing .rentals and appropriated $500.00 to defray the expense of a housing authority for the first year of its existence, and named certain individuals as members of the housing authority of said city, and at a subsequent date, appropriated additional sums of money to the housing authority.

On the 2nd day of September, 1938, the City of Orlando, through its city council, undertook to obligate the City to perform two. agreements denominated' by it as: (a) Equivalent Elimination' Agreement,- and (b) Cooperation Agreement. The Equivalent Elimination Agreement *341 bound the city to eliminate unsafe and unsanitary dwelling units and to construct a similar number of new units not exceeding 135 to be used as low renting projects. The Cooperation Agreement obligated the city to furnish the housing authority, for the tenants thereof, municipal services and facilities without cost or charge to other residents or inhabitants of the city, inclusive of streets, roads and alleys within', adjacent to or traversing each project. Other allegations of pledged corporate functions incident to the carrying out of all the provisions of Chapter 17981 appeared in the bill.

It is alleged that the houses when completed would be occupied by negro families of small income; that sufficient housing facilities for these negro families n'ow exists in Orlando, and the result would be that these families will move from privately owned darkey residential districts of the city to the newly constructed houses and there will be a surplus of low cost housing facilities in Orlando, and the plaintiff will be taxed to pay the costs incident to their construction and maintenance, and similar property will be taxed, remain vacant and no income will be derived through private ownership.

It is next contended that the housing project is not a public purpose and the low cost houses, under the provisions of the Act, may be sold and the ownership and possession fall into private hands; that Chapter 17982, Laws of Florida, Acts of 1937, grants to municipalities the power to purchase or invest in the debentures of the housing authority, and for this reason the entire Act was unconstitutional; that the city is obligated by the Cooperation Agreement with the housing authority to construct low rent houses on' lands situated beyond the territorial limits of the City of Orlando and for this reason Chapter 17981, supra, is unconstitutional ; that the expenditure of funds by the City of *342 Orlando for the maintenance of benefits under the obligation', supra, for the benefit of the housing authority is ultra vires and beyond the constitutional power of said city and that the undertakings of the City of Orlando with the housing authority constitutes the taking of property without due process of law which is prohibited by the State and Federal Constitutions.

The prayer of the bill of complaint is for a restraining order against the City of Orlando, viz.: (a) restraining the city from making contributions to the housing authority; (b) restraining the City of Orlando from complying with the Cooperation Agreement; (c) restraining the City of Orlando from complying with the Equivalent Elimination Agreement; (d) restraining the furnishing of services of officers by the city to the housing authority; (e) other allegations in' the prayer appear but are unnecessary to be recited for the disposition of this case.

An application was made for a temporary restraining order and the lower court on the 16th day of September, 1938, entered an order denying the same. The City Council of the City of Orlando and the Housing Authority of the City of Orlando, and the Commissioners of the Housing Authority of said city each filed motions to dismiss the bill of complaint on the common ground that the bill of complaint contained no equity, an'd the same was on the 9th day of December, 1938, heard in the lower court and an order was made and entered sustaining said motions to dismiss on the ground that there was no equity in the bill of complaint, and the order was bottomed on the case of Marvin v. Housing Authority of Jacksonville, 133 Fla. 590, 183 So. 145. From said order an appeal has been perfected to this Court.

One of the first questions to be decided is whether or not the action of the City Council of Orlando in creating a *343 Housing Authority for the City of Orlando for people of low income is a public purpose. Several authorities from other jurisdictions are cited to sustain their contention. This Court is not interested in the motive and wisdom or policy of legislation, as these prerogatives are to be exercised under our system of government by the Legislature. The Legislature, by the enactment of Chapter 17981, supra, declared that there was a shortage of sanitary dwellings available for persons of low income and that under the police power of the state it was necessary in preventing crime and the spread of disease, thereby affecting the health, safety, morals and welfare of the residents of Florida; that the slums situated in the different areas of Florida, can be made safe and sanitary by the construction of houses to be occupied by persons of low income and that such was necessary for the public welfare of the State of Florida. A public purpose has for its objective the promotion of the public health, safety, morals, welfare, security, prosperity and contentment of all the inhabitants or residents within a given political division. See Marvin v. Housing Authority of Jacksonville, 133 Fla. 590, 183 So. 145. There is no merit in this contention.

It is next contended that the so called slums clearance project, if a public purpose, is a responsibility to be administered by the county rather than the municipality. In support of-this contention Section 3 of Article XIII of the Constitution of Florida and other authorities are cited. We find no fault with these authorities. It is true that the Constitution and Statute make provisions for certain indigents in Florida, but the method therein prescribed is not the only approach to these social security problems. The responsibility of showing error rests with the appellant and a presumption exists as a matter of law as to the correct *344 ness of the ruling of the lower court. Counsel for appellant have failed to show error on the record.

It is next contended that Chapter 17981, supra, is unconstitutional and void because it violates the principle of equality and uniformity of taxation.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Hoefling v. City of Miami
17 F. Supp. 3d 1227 (S.D. Florida, 2014)
Smith Barney Inc. v. Potter
725 So. 2d 1223 (District Court of Appeal of Florida, 1999)
Holiday Island Suburban Improvement District 1 v. Williams
749 S.W.2d 314 (Supreme Court of Arkansas, 1988)
State Ex Rel. Creighton University v. Smith
353 N.W.2d 267 (Nebraska Supreme Court, 1984)
Baycol, Inc. v. Downtown Development Authority
315 So. 2d 451 (Supreme Court of Florida, 1975)
Ago
Florida Attorney General Reports, 1974
Bearden v. Metropolitan Dade County
258 So. 2d 344 (District Court of Appeal of Florida, 1972)
Dressel v. Dade County
219 So. 2d 716 (District Court of Appeal of Florida, 1969)
Housing Authority of the City of Melbourne v. Richardson
196 So. 2d 489 (District Court of Appeal of Florida, 1967)
HOUS. AUTH. OF CITY OF MELBOURNE v. Richardson
196 So. 2d 489 (District Court of Appeal of Florida, 1967)
Gwin v. City of Tallahassee
132 So. 2d 273 (Supreme Court of Florida, 1961)
Grubstein v. Urban Renewal Agency of City of Tampa
115 So. 2d 745 (Supreme Court of Florida, 1959)
Morgenstern v. Ruza
101 So. 2d 429 (District Court of Appeal of Florida, 1958)
Lynch v. Housing Authority of Miami
73 So. 2d 70 (Supreme Court of Florida, 1954)
Adams v. Housing Authority of City of Daytona Beach
60 So. 2d 663 (Supreme Court of Florida, 1952)
Barnes v. City of Miami
47 So. 2d 3 (Supreme Court of Florida, 1950)
Watson v. Larson
33 So. 2d 155 (Supreme Court of Florida, 1947)
Greensboro-High Point Airport Authority v. Johnson
226 N.C. 1 (Supreme Court of North Carolina, 1946)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
196 So. 313, 142 Fla. 338, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/lott-et-vir-v-city-of-orlando-fla-1939.