Valcour Builders, Inc. v. State

52 Misc. 2d 760, 277 N.Y.S.2d 30, 1967 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 1833
CourtNew York Court of Claims
DecidedJanuary 25, 1967
DocketClaim No. 45349
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 52 Misc. 2d 760 (Valcour Builders, Inc. v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New York Court of Claims primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Valcour Builders, Inc. v. State, 52 Misc. 2d 760, 277 N.Y.S.2d 30, 1967 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 1833 (N.Y. Super. Ct. 1967).

Opinion

Henry W. Lengyel, J.

This is a claim for the appropriation of claimant’s land pursuant to sections 307 and 355 of the Education Law, which proceeding is described as State University of New York, State University College at Plattsburgh, Clinton County, Map No. 91.

Claimant was the owner of subject property by reason of a deed dated November 8, 1963, from Gerald W. Tremblay, grantor, and recorded in the Clinton County Clerk’s office on November 26,1963, in Liber 470 of Deeds at page 729. Claimant paid $20,000 for said property.

The property conveyed by the above deed contained 2.56± acres and was the northern portion of lands owned by Gerald W. Tremblay. Claimant took the position that said 2.56± acres were landlocked at the date of purchase and the State did not dispute this fact. On cross-examination the State’s appraiser was asked whether or not the property was landlocked at the date of purchase and answered that technically speaking it was. Obviously, the claimant was indirectly saying to the court, if this property was worth $20,000 when landlocked, just think how much more valuable it was when it had the access which was developed after the purchase but before the appropriation. We reject claimant’s theory of value insofar as it might flow from the alleged landlocked situation, for two reasons.

[762]*762Legally, the 2.56± acres were not landlocked at the date of purchase. As stated in Palmer v. Palmer (150 N. Y. 139, 146-147): “Where a person conveys to another a piece of land surrounded by lands of the grantor, the grantee and those claiming under him have a right of way by necessity through the lands of the grantor as an incident of the grant. This principle applies where the land conveyed is surrounded in part by the lands of the grantor and in part by the lands of a third person. * * * A right of way of necessity * * * is not, however, a perpetual right of way, but continues only so long as the necessity exists.” (See, also, 17 N. Y. Jur., Easements and Licenses, § 87.) The claimant, therefore, had a right of way by necessity across the remaining lands of Tremblay to Sugar Street on November 26, 1963. This right of way was extinguished when the City of Plattsburgh accepted, on November 26, 1963, claimant’s deed and Ollivetti’s deed to permit an extension of Dennis Avenue along the south boundary of claimant’s remaining property and an extension of Sanborn Avenue along the east boundary of claimant’s property. Claimant’s property was never landlocked.

Claimant’s secretary and treasurer was an experienced and well qualified building contractor and land developer. It is our opinion that he would not permit claimant to be so financially improvident as to invest $20,000 in a landlocked parcel of land. We believe that claimant full well knew what access rights it had when its deed was recorded on November 26, 1963. We note that claimant’s deed which was dated November 8, 1963, was not recorded until November 26, 1963, some 6 days after the date of the Ollivetti deed, which provided for the transfer of the required lands to the City of Plattsburgh for the extension of Sanborn Avenue. It is of interest that claimant’s survey of its proposed subdivision was completed on October 22, 1963 and filed with the Clinton County Clerk on November 7, 1963; and, that claimant had obtained preliminary approval from the Champlain Valley Federal Loan for the required construction financing. Such sureness of purpose militates against the position that this was landlocked property with access on the date of purchase being left in the laps of the gods of chance. It is our opinion, and we so find, that claimant paid fair market value for a parcel of land with legal access, but without dedicated streets; and, with a highest and best use, on November 26, 1963, of potential subdivision land for multiple occupancy residence buildings.

Subject proceeding appropriated 1.56± acres of claimant’s land, which was all of claimant’s land remaining after the [763]*763conveyance of 1± acres to the City of Plattsburgh for street purposes.

Claimant’s appraiser stated that he relied upon the market data approach to obtain his fair market value; and, further, that he used the land residual value obtained from the capitalization approach as a check upon the fair market value obtained from comparable sales. He stated that the capitalization approach established a value of $58,160 and the market data approach a value of $50,000 which was his appraised damage figure.

The State objected to claimant’s testimony which related to that which had been accomplished to prepare this property for subdivision purposes; to construction costs; to the use of projected net income in the appraiser’s capitalization approach; and, to the capitalization approach. We reserved decision on said objections. The bases for such objection were the legal principles set forth in: Levitin v. State of New York (12 A D 2d 6); Hewitt v. State of New York (18 A D 2d 1128); Barra v. State of New York (22 A D 2d 750) and Tarricone v. State of New York (23 A D 2d 804). (See, also, Fort Amherst Realty Co. v. State of New York (27 A D 2d 582.)

The line of cases which follow the Hewitt (supra) doctrine stand for the principle that vacant land, which has a highest and best use of potential subdivision, cannot be valued as though it had been subdivided at the date of appropriation. Such land must be valued as vacant acreage with an increment in value because of the potentiality of a higher use.

The Levitin (supra) decision established that it is improper to determine the fair market value of vacant, unimproved land by a capitalization of speculative income from a nonexistent future improvement. (See, also, Matter of City of New York [Blackwell's Is. Bridge], 118 App. Div. 272; Brighton Plaza v. State of New York, 32 Misc 2d 266.)

Claimant’s counsel acknowledged the above cases and legal principles but contended that subject claim fell within the ambit of Mattydale Shopping Center v. State of New York (303 N. Y. 974) and Levin v. State of New York (13 N Y 2d 87) which, in his opinion, established an exception to said principles.

We have examined the lower court and the Court of Appeals decisions in Mattydale (supra) and Levin (supra).

The Levin (supra) decision, in our opinion, was a logical and practical extension of and application of the rules of the market place to the appraisal doctrine enunciated in Levitin (supra).

[764]*764As Chief Judge Fuld stated in Levin (supra, pp. 91-92) the trial court ‘ ‘ did not fall into the error of valuing the property by capitalizing the net rental income as might have been proper if the building had been completed and rent had commenced. * * * It does not follow, however, that the Court of Claims erred in receiving the evidence of the lease, the prospective net rental income, the plans to develop the subject property and the evidence relating to construction costs. * * * What the purchaser would pay for the property would undoubtedly be influenced by the extent to which the property had been exploited. * * * the purchaser would make two different estimates: first, what rental income could be derived from the property; second, what would have to be paid to acquire the property, that is, its market value.

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Related

Azzolini v. State
63 Misc. 2d 631 (New York State Court of Claims, 1970)
Parisi v. State
62 Misc. 2d 378 (New York State Court of Claims, 1970)
Farrell v. State
58 Misc. 2d 115 (New York State Court of Claims, 1968)

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Bluebook (online)
52 Misc. 2d 760, 277 N.Y.S.2d 30, 1967 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 1833, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/valcour-builders-inc-v-state-nyclaimsct-1967.