Smilie v. Taft Stadium Board of Control

1949 OK 42, 205 P.2d 301, 201 Okla. 303, 1949 Okla. LEXIS 287
CourtSupreme Court of Oklahoma
DecidedMarch 8, 1949
DocketNo. 33348
StatusPublished
Cited by14 cases

This text of 1949 OK 42 (Smilie v. Taft Stadium Board of Control) 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
Smilie v. Taft Stadium Board of Control, 1949 OK 42, 205 P.2d 301, 201 Okla. 303, 1949 Okla. LEXIS 287 (Okla. 1949).

Opinion

HALLEY, J.

This is an appeal by R. W. Smilie from a judgment of the district court of Oklahoma county denying his application for injunction. The action was brought by plaintiff in his own behalf and in behalf of others to enjoin midget automobile racing conducted at Taft Stadium. The action, in the main, is predicated on the theory that the races were conducted in such manner as to constitute the race track a nuisance.

The stadium is situated on a tract of land owned by the board of education of Oklahoma City and is located on the northwest corner of 23rd street and May avenue in Oklahoma City, in a residential area. The stadium was constructed with funds raised by public donations, pre-seáson ticket sales sponsored by the Junior Chamber of Commerce and board of education projects and help received from the W.P.A. It was completed and dedicated on November 9, 1934, as a civic recreational center.

Defendant, Taft Stadium Board, a nonprofit corporation, took charge of [305]*305the stadium on the 25th day of March, 1940, under written contract entered into between it and defendant board of education. The actual management of the stadium was placed in a board of control known as the Taft Stadium Board of Control and consisting of principals of Classen, Northeast and Britton High Schools, two members of the Junior Chamber of Commerce of Oklahoma City, and two business men of Oklahoma City. The athletic coaches of the schools above mentioned, the president of the Junior Chamber of Commerce, and two members of the board of education of Oklahoma City were made ex-officio members of the board. None of these persons received any compensation for their services.

The stadium, under the management of the board of control, was used for the purpose of holding and conducting various sports and entertainments, including high school and college football games, symphony orchestra concerts, rodeos, model air contests and exhibitions, band concerts and other sports and amusements. The profits derived from such events were used in making improvements on the stadium grounds.

In 1946 the Taft Stadium Board authorized and permitted Ray Lavely and O. D. Lavely, partners doing business as Lavely Racing Promoters, to conduct midget automobile racing at the stadium during the year 1946. In 1947 a written contract was entered into between the parties whereby the Taft Stadium Board leased to the Lavelys the use of Taft Stadium and its facilities ■one night each week for presentation of midget auto races from July 1, 1947, to January 1, 1948, for a rental of 12% of the gross gate receipts. The contract, among other things, provided that no racing should be conducted after 10 o’clock at night, or on Sunday. The Lave-lys conducted races on .Monday of each week during the years 1946 and 1947, beginning May 1st and ending November 1st, and were operating under the 1947 contract at the time suit was instituted.

The evidence shows that plaintiff is a resident and taxpayer of Oklahoma City and that he resides within a block and a half of the Taft Stadium; and he and eight other persons residing within three blocks of the stadium testified that the Lavelys had conducted auto races at the stadium on Monday night of each week during the summer months of 1946 and are continuing to conduct such races; that the races start at 8 o’clock in the evening and are usually concluded by 10 o’clock; that the cars participating in the races usually start warming up about 6:30 in the evening; that some of the cars are in motion at intervals during such warming-up period until the races start; that there is used in connection with the races a public-address system, which is in continuous operation from the time the cars start warming up until the races are over; that loud noises are caused by the cars participating in the races and by the public-address system, and that such noises are disturbing and annoying and interfere with witnesses in the enjoyment of their homes; that such noises are unusually loud and disturbing during the actual races; that the cars run at a high rate of speed without mufflers; that during the races, witnesses have been unable to carry on ordinary conversations; that they cannot, because of the noise, carry on a telephone conversation or hear their radios. Some of the witnesses who have small children testified that the children could not sleep while the races were in progress; that the noise was greater while the cars were engaged in actual racing than while they were warming up in preparation for the races. The evidence is undisputed that the áctual time consumed by all the cars in racing on any given night does not exceed 23 minutes; that considerable time is spent between races in getting cars in position for the next race; and that during -such periods some car is in motion warming up for the next race.

In addition to these witnesses, plaintiff presented a list of 58 additional wit[306]*306nesses, and it was stipulated that all of such witnesses would testify substantially as did the others as to the effect of the noise emanating from the race track.

Plaintiff offered evidence establishing that patrons of the races parked their cars on the streets in front of the homes of persons residing in the neighborhood of the stadium; that such parking partially blocked traffic on such streets and that cars traveling in opposite directions could not pass each other while the cars were so parked. Several witnesses also testified that on various occasions patrons of the races parked their cars in such manner as to block their driveways. Evidence was also offered by the plaintiff tending to establish that the maintenance of the race track damaged the property of those living near the stadium in that it materially decreased the value thereof.

Defendants, in rebuttal to plaintiff’s evidence, offered testimony of ten witnesses living near the stadium, each of whom in substance testified that the noise emanating from the race track was not of such volume and intensity as to be disturbing or annoying to them and their families; that it did not interfere with their carrying on ordinary conversations; that it did not interfere with them in their use of radios or telephones; that the noise created by the cars in warming up was no greater than the noisé created by passenger cars traveling on May avenue and 23rd street, or other city streets, and no greater than that created by city busses; that the noise occurring while the cars were actually engaged in racing, while greater than that occasioned by warming up, was not of such volume or intensity as to be annoying or disturbing; that the noise caused by the public-address system was no more annoying or disturbing than the noise occurring while broadcasting a football or baseball game. Some of these witnesses who had small children testified that the children were not disturbed by the noise accompanying the races nor by the public-address system, but that the children slept soundly during all of the time the races were in progress. In addition to these witnesses, defendant offered a list of 90 witnesses living near the stadium and it was stipulated that such witnesses would in substance testify as did the others relative to the effect of the noise emanating from the races. Several witnesses also testified in behalf of defendants that in their opinion the maintenance of the race track did not in any manner decrease the- value of surrounding property.

This in substance constitutes the evidence offered in the case.

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Bluebook (online)
1949 OK 42, 205 P.2d 301, 201 Okla. 303, 1949 Okla. LEXIS 287, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/smilie-v-taft-stadium-board-of-control-okla-1949.