Makrauer v. Board of Adjustment, City of Tulsa

1948 OK 102, 193 P.2d 291, 200 Okla. 285, 1948 Okla. LEXIS 469
CourtSupreme Court of Oklahoma
DecidedApril 27, 1948
DocketNo. 32744
StatusPublished
Cited by12 cases

This text of 1948 OK 102 (Makrauer v. Board of Adjustment, City of Tulsa) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Makrauer v. Board of Adjustment, City of Tulsa, 1948 OK 102, 193 P.2d 291, 200 Okla. 285, 1948 Okla. LEXIS 469 (Okla. 1948).

Opinion

WELCH, J.

The matters in controversy involve the zoning ordinances of the city of Tulsa. This is an appeal from a judgment of the district court of Tulsa county sustaining the action of the Board of Adjustment and of the Building Inspector of the city of Tulsa in denying the plaintiff in error (hereinafter referred to as applicant), a certificate of occupancy or permit to use certain real estate in said city for a stated purpose. Applicant’s real estate was located in a U-3 zone or commercial class zone under the city zoning ordinance. Prior to December 4, 1945, sec. 4, Title 32, Tulsa Revised Ordinances, was in force and effect. That section classified the desired use as being a commercial use, and under the general zoning ordinance and section 4, supra, the applicant would have been [286]*286entitled to the permit and certificate of occupancy as applied for.

On December 4, 1945, and on December 11, 1945, the board of commissioners of the city of Tulsa adopted Ordinances Nos. 5022 and 5027 which amended the general zoning ordinance and changed the same by transferring from the U-3 zone, or commercial use zone, to the U-4 or industrial use zone, the specific use or business which applicant desired to install on his premises, so that under said amendatory ordinances the applicant was not entitled to use his premises for the specific business use, and therefore his application was denied.

The question here is as to the validity of the amendatory ordinances Nos. 5022 and 5027 supra. If those amendatory ordinances are invalid, as applicant contends, then the trial court judgment was erroneous, while if those amenda-tory ordinances are valid, then the trial court did not err. The exact question is whether the city of Tulsa had power and authority to enact those amendatory ordinances without notice and hearing and without following specified procedure in amending its general zoning ordinance.

In 1923 the Legislature passed a building, zoning, and city planning law, chap. 178, page 301, 11 O. S. 1941 §§401-410. Section 401 authorizes municipalities to enact zoning regulations. Section 402 authorizes division of the municipality into zoning districts and regulation and restriction of the erection, construction, or use of buildings, structures, or land. Section 404 provides that no regulation, restriction, or boundary shall become effective until after a public hearing and at least fifteen days’ notice in an official paper. Section 405 provides that the provisions of section 404 relative to public hearings and official notice shall apply equally to all changes or amendments.

Immediately thereafter the city of Tulsa adopted its general zoning ordinance, Title 32, Tulsa Revised Ordinances. This general zoning ordinance substantially copied the state zoning act and in addition thereto divided the city of Tulsa into numerous zones and stated the uses applicable to each such zone. In drafting and adopting this general zoning ordinance the city followed the provisions of the State Zoning Act as to notices, hearings, recommendations and the like, and that general zoning ordinance contained a provision quite similar to section 405 of the State Zoning Act; that provision in the ordinance being section 35 thereof providing in material substance, or in part, as follows:

“The regulations, restrictions, prohibitions and limitations imposed, and the districts herein created, may be amended, supplemented, changed, modified or repealed, from time to time by ordinance, but no such change shall be made without public notice and hearing and filing of a report and recommendation upon such proposed ordinance by the City Planning Commission. ...”

In further explanation of the character of notice referred to in the aforesaid section 35, the Tulsa general zoning ordinance provided in section 37 in material part as follows:

“Public notice of any hearing shall be deemed to have been given when a notice setting forth the general purpose of any such hearing and the time and place thereof shall have been published at least fifteen days before the date set for such hearing in an official newspaper of the City of Tulsa. . . .”

It is conceded here that the amenda-tory ordinances numbered 5022 and 5027, supra, were adopted without any character of notice or hearing.

On behalf of the city it is contended that said ordinances were passed in compliance with the requirements of the city charter, that is, the requirements as to the passage of ordinances generally, and therefore that said amendatory ordinances are valid without compliance with the specific procedure required by the State Zoning [287]*287Act, and by the general zoning ordinance of Tulsa. That is, it is contended that the city of Tulsa, being a charter city, had the charter power to pass any and all ordinances, including zoning ordinances, without state statutory restrictions in the passage and adoption thereof.

The foregoing contention in behalf of the city is based upon the legal philosophy that the charter is the supreme law of the city, and that its provisions are controlling in the case of conflict between such provisions and the provisions of state statute. Numerous authorities are cited in support of this legal theory. We make no further reference to such authorities other than to say that we are mindful of that legal theory and acquiesce therein, but we do not accord to such authorities the full application here contended for.

We are not cited to any provisions of the charter of Tulsa referring to the zoning of such city, or to the passage and adoption of zoning ordinances or other ordinances restricting the manner and purpose for which a citizen of that city may use and occupy real property which he owns therein.

It is doubtful that the city would undertake to provide by charter that its zoning ordinances could be adopted in the first instance, or amended from time to time, without restriction, and without hearing or notice. At any rate it has not done so. The value of the zoning plan depends to some extend upon permanence and continuity and the very nature of such a plan would seem to prohibit, or at least strongly discourage, the thought of constant change in this or that detail, or the right to change or amend without some provision for notice, or formality of procedure so as to have due regard for the rights of owners of property directly affected, and owners of adjacent property. The zoning plan in final operation and effect is a restriction upon the use of real property or a taking from the property owner of his unfettered right to use his property in any legitimate way he desires. While the zoning plan is very important, and perhaps absolutely necessary in cities, for the general welfare, it is also highly important to the individual property owner. And the very nature of the plan would strongly argue that in the first instance the zoning of the city should not be accomplished, without notice and hearings, and that thereafter amendments and changes should not be made without similar procedure, or at least some character of notice and hearing.

While, of course, it must be contemplated that changing conditions and change of circumstance would require change in zoning plans from time to time, the same may well be accomplished in an orderly and deliberate manner upon notice and hearing.

Prior to 1923 it does not appear that the city claimed the right and power to pass and enforce general zoning ordinances.

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Bluebook (online)
1948 OK 102, 193 P.2d 291, 200 Okla. 285, 1948 Okla. LEXIS 469, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/makrauer-v-board-of-adjustment-city-of-tulsa-okla-1948.