Welz & Zerweck v. State

174 Misc. 198, 20 N.Y.S.2d 349, 1940 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 1790
CourtNew York Court of Claims
DecidedMay 27, 1940
DocketClaim No. 25679; Claim No. 25680; Claim No. 25681
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 174 Misc. 198 (Welz & Zerweck 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
Welz & Zerweck v. State, 174 Misc. 198, 20 N.Y.S.2d 349, 1940 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 1790 (N.Y. Super. Ct. 1940).

Opinion

Ryan, J.

Claimants respectively own certain parcels of land abutting on the northwesterly side of Trotting Course lane in the borough of Queens, city of New York. The street is intersected by the right of way of the Long Island Railroad Company and the grade crossing which heretofore existed has been eliminated by the Transit Commission pursuant to the provisions of chapter 677 cf the Laws of 1928. Trotting Course lane has been closed at a point northeasterly of the claimant’s properties.

No part of the corporeal property of any claimant has been taken or encroached upon. No notice of appropriation has been served upon any claimant. The elimination project was completed and accepted by the Transit Commission as of March 16, 1938, that being the date of the final order of approval of the work. Obviously the physical changes at the grade crossing and the blocking off of the street must have been accomplished at some earlier date. The moving affidavit states that all construction work was completed January 5, 1938.

Claimants sue to recover damages “ by reason of loss of easements, light, air and access and ingress and egress on and over Trotting Course Lane in front of and adjacent to and to the north of ” their respective properties. Each claim was filed March 15, 1940, which was within two years from the date of the order of the Transit Commission finally approving the work. ■

The Attorney-General has moved in each case to dismiss the claim upon the ground that this court has no jurisdiction to hear and determine the same. He asserts that the claimants’ respective causes of action, if any, are governed by the provisions of section 7 of chapter 677 of the Laws of 1928, which reads as follows: “ If the work of such elimination causes damage to property not acquired as above provided, the State shall be hable therefor in the first instance, but this provision shall not be deemed to create any liability not already existing in law. Claims for such damage may be adjusted by the Transit Commission with the approval of the railroad corporation or corporations and the city if the amount thereof can be agreed upon with the persons making such claims, and any amount so agreed upon shall be paid as a part of the cost of such elimination as prescribed by this act. If the amount of any such claim is not agreed upon, such claim may be presented to the Court of Claims which is hereby authorized to hear such claim and determine if the amount of such claim or any part [200]*200thereof is a legal claim against the State and if it so determines, to make an award and enter judgment thereon against the State, provided, however, that such claim is filed with the Court of Claims within six months after final approval of the elimination work by such commission.” (Italics supplied.)

The section immediately preceding that above quoted, viz., section 6 of chapter 677 of the Laws of 1928, describes how the acquisition of lands or easements therein necessary for the elimination of grade crossings shall be accomplished and directs in detail the steps to be taken for the formal appropriation of such lands and easements. Subdivision 8 of section 6 provides: Any owner may present to the Court of Claims a claim for the value of such property appropriated and for legal damages, as provided by law for the filing of claims with the Court of Claims.,,

The Statute of Limitations provided by law for the filing of claims for the appropriation of lands is two years. (Court of Claims Act, § 10, formerly § 15. See Laws of 1921, chap. 474; Laws of 1936, chap. 775; Laws of 1939, chap. 860.)

Claimants here apparently proceeded upon a two-year Statute of Limitations and upon the assumption that it began to run March 16, 1938, because théir claims were filed just at the expiration of two years from that date. However, they now assert that no Statute of Limitations is applicable to any appropriation of an interest in land when no notice either actual or constructive has been given by the State. For this proposition they rely on two opinions of the late Judge Cardozo which appear in Matter of City of New York (212 N. Y. 538) and Matter of City of New York (219 id. 399). We think it is important to quote from the opinion in the latter case as follows: The owner of this land had no notice, actual or constructive, of the filing of the map. Until the physical invasion of bis easements in 1914, he had no notice of an intent to close the existing highway. In such circumstances, the period of limitation prescribed by section 5 of the statute is inapplicable (p. 406).

We believe that in this case the closing of the street was sufficient notice to these claimants to be a compliance with the rule thus laid down and to start the running of the Statute of Limitations.

What limitation applies? The claimants say that they seek to be compensated, not for damages to property not acquired in accordance with section 6 of chapter 677 of the Laws of 1928, but for the taking of easements such as were recognized in Story v. New York Elevated R. R. Co. (90 N. Y. 122) as entitling an abutting owner to compensation. Admitting that no description and map of any lands which the Transit Commission has deemed necessary [201]*201in the ehmination of the Trotting Course lane grade crossing has been prepared, filed and served upon them as required by the various subdivisions of section 6 of the act, they nevertheless argue that there has been a taking as contemplated by that section and that if any limitation is to be applied, it is that referred to in subdivision 8 above quoted.

The position taken by the claimants is not in accord with recent decisions. In Champion Oil Co., Inc., v. State (161 Misc. 143; affd., 251 App. Div. 781) an award was made for cutting off physical access to claimant’s property. In Caldwell & Ward Brass Co. v. State (161 Misc. 147; affd., 251 App. Div. 781; affd., 277 N. Y. 547) an award was made for loss of easements of light, air and access as defined in the Story case. In Solkat Realty Corp. v. State (172 Misc. 981) an award was made for damages caused by change of grade. All three claims were filed pursuant to the provisions of chapter 825 of the Laws of 1928, the Syracuse Grade Crossing Act. The awards were based upon the provisions of section 9 thereof. The language of that section is identical with that of section 7 hereinabove quoted except for those words which indicate that the Public Service Commission, rather than the Transit Commission, and the county of Onondaga, rather than the city of New York, are responsible for the elimination project and the administration of matters pertaining thereto.

In Knights v. State (161 Misc. 552; affd., 251 App. Div. 781) awards were made for change of grade. The claims were filed under and the awards wrere based upon the provisions of section 6 of chapter 678 of the Laws of 1928. The language of that section is identical with the language of section 7 hereinabove quoted except that again the reference is to the Public Service Commission rather than the Transit Commission and to the county or counties wherein the work is performed rather than to the city of New York.

In Mirro v. State (172 Misc. 963) an award was made for damages caused by change of grade. The claim was filed under and the award was based upon the provisions of the statute here invoked by the Attorney-General, section 7 of chapter 677 of the Laws of 1928.

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Related

Larkin v. State
129 Misc. 2d 280 (New York State Court of Claims, 1985)

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Bluebook (online)
174 Misc. 198, 20 N.Y.S.2d 349, 1940 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 1790, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/welz-zerweck-v-state-nyclaimsct-1940.