White v. Board of County Com'rs of Tulsa County

1954 OK 48, 267 P.2d 579, 1954 Okla. LEXIS 444
CourtSupreme Court of Oklahoma
DecidedFebruary 9, 1954
DocketNo. 35974
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 1954 OK 48 (White v. Board of County Com'rs of Tulsa County) 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
White v. Board of County Com'rs of Tulsa County, 1954 OK 48, 267 P.2d 579, 1954 Okla. LEXIS 444 (Okla. 1954).

Opinion

WELCH, Justice.

Carl M. White, Ralph Henley and Frank Koblischeck, Jr., residents, property owners and taxpayers of Tulsa County, for themselves and for all other persons similarly situated, commenced action against the County Commissioners, The Treasurer, and the County Clerk of Tulsa County, to enjoin the expenditure of funds of Tulsa County derived from a certain bond issue.

In petition the plaintiffs, in substance, stated that by the vote of a majority of the people voting in an election in Tulsa County the defendant Board of County Commissioners was authorized to issue bonds of Tulsa County in the sum of $900,000, and that said bonds have been issued and sold. That the official acts of the defendants, and all the publicity and information furnished to the public, leading up to the actual voting on the propositions submitted at the election, limited the purpose of the bond issue to the purpose of acquisition of right-of-way for a roadway described as a grade by-pass from a point on U. S. Highway, 66, southwest of [581]*581the City of Tulsa, along 51st Street east to Memorial Avenue, in Tulsa, thence north to State Highway 33. That the defendants now intend to expend funds derived from the bond issue for the purchase of right-of-way .for a road-way in part paralleling 51st Street, and then northeast along a certain diagonal route to State Highway 33, and in furtherance of a plan for construction of a limited-access road along such route. That the expenditure of the funds for this routing and for this type of. construction will be illegal and unauthorized, and that this routing and type of construction would seriously damage the plaintiffs and others.

At trial it was shown that at a time prior to a proclamation calling an election the then members of the Board of County Commissioners of Tulsa County signed a letter which was delivered to the State Highway Department. The letter was signed following a conference, between said Commissioners and the Mayor and City Attorney of the City of Tulsa which was held in the Mayor’s office. In the letter it is stated.

“We, the undersigned, being the' individual duly elected, qualified and acting members of the Board of County Commissioners of Tulsa County, Oklahoma, do for ourselves, individually, affirm as follows:
“1. That we are desirous of obtaining a bridge across the Arkansas River at 5lst Street in the County of Tulsa, and the construction and improvement of a highway from the junction of 51st Street and the Sapulpa Road easterly along 51st Street to Memorial Drive, thence northerly to a junction with State Highway No. 33, all located in Tulsa County, Oklahoma.
“2. That we are in accord with, and approve in principle, the plan that such a project be undertaken by the State Highway Department and the Bureau of Public Roads of the United States Government at no cost to the County of Tulsa except the cost of acquiring the necessary rights of way for said project.
“3. That although the County of Tulsa does not at this time have on hand and available for such purposes sufficient funds to acquire said necessary rights of way, we will at the proper time take such -steps -as may be necessary, and which we may be legally able to do to propose and submit to the qualified electors of Tulsa County a bond issue in an amount sufficient to acquire such necessary rights of way over and across the property lying outside the corporate limits of the City of Tulsa; said rights of way to be at least 175 feet in width if so required by the State Highway Department and the Bureau of Public Roads.”

A proclamation was subsequently issued and published calling an election to be held under, authority of 69 O.S.1951 §§ 161 to 170. The ballots furnished the voters at the election contained a proposition, as follows:

“Shall the Board of County Commissioners issue the 'negotiable coupon bonds of Tulsa County, State of Oklahoma, in the sum of Nine Hundred. Thousand ($900,000) Dollars * * * for the purpose of providing funds for the purpose of building and constructing permanent state and county roads.”'

In the time before the election persons in the hire of the City of Tulsa made ap-praisements of properties located along the 51st Street-Memorial Drive Route, or the route of the road-way as mentioned in the Commissioners’ letter, supra, and mentioned in the plaintiffs’ petition.

There was an offer of evidence to show certain newspaper articles and non-official advertisements prior to the election which discussed' the acquirement of right-of-way and the construction of a highway along the route of 51st Street and Memorial Drive. The said offer of proof was rejected by the trial court.

The defendants in pleading admit á present purpose to expend funds derived from the bond issue to advance the construction of a highway along an officially designated route of a certain description, which route we have herein referred to as the “diagonal [582]*582route,” the same being the route described in the plaintiffs’ petition as an object of their complaint.

It was shown that the County of Tulsa, in conjunction 'with the City of Tulsa, and the Oklahoma Highway Department and the U. S. Bureau of Public Roads have planned to construct a limited-access highway along said designated and approved route; that the county’s part in carrying out such plan is the acquirement of right-of-way and there was testimony that the costs of such right-of-way may equal or be in excess of the amount of the proceeds of the bond issue.

After all of the evidence in the case the trial court made and entered certain findings of fact and conclusions of law and entered judgment that plaintiffs’ petition for injunction be denied and that the cause be dismissed.

In' argument for reversal of the judgment the plaintiffs'assert:

“That the evidence discloses that the official acts of the Board of County Commissioners prior to the bond election of July 4, 1950, were such that the ballot title was limited therein in purpose so that the money derived from the issuance of such bonds can only be spent legally for right-of-way for anon-limited-access by-pass and this bypass must be along the route of 51st Street and Memorial Drive.”

The plaintiffs contend that the' Commis-' sioners in' official acts before the bond election adopted a plan and purpose of acquirement of right-of-way and for construction of a non-limited-access highway along the route of 51st Street and Memorial Drive as the end and object of the bond issue; that said plan and purpose as reflected by said-official acts inhered in the general proposition approved by the majority of the voters at the bond election, and hence the money derived from the issuance of the bonds pursuant' to said election may be used only for the purpose of acquirement of right-of-way and construction along said certain route.

With reference to the factual basis of their contention the plaintiffs direct attention to the evidence concerning the letter signed by the members cjf the •Board of County Commissioners and which was delivered to the State Highway Department.

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1954 OK 48, 267 P.2d 579, 1954 Okla. LEXIS 444, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/white-v-board-of-county-comrs-of-tulsa-county-okla-1954.