Williams v. Borough of Hollidaysburg

60 Pa. D. & C. 105, 1947 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 93

This text of 60 Pa. D. & C. 105 (Williams v. Borough of Hollidaysburg) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Blair County primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Williams v. Borough of Hollidaysburg, 60 Pa. D. & C. 105, 1947 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 93 (Pa. Super. Ct. 1947).

Opinion

Fetterhoof, P. J.,

specially presiding,

This is a bill in equity brought by George W. Williams et al., citizens and taxpayers of the Borough of Hollidaysburg, plaintiffs, against the Borough of Hollidaysburg, defendant, to restrain it from installing parking meters upon certain designated streets by virtue of Ordinance No. 169 enacted by the borough on June 3, 1946, which ordinance they main[106]*106tain is unconstitutional and void. It is alleged that the ordinance was not properly advertised and that the installation of the meters would constitute an unreasonable, unnecessary, and oppressive burden on plaintiffs.

Defendant filed an answer and the case was set down for hearing. Testimony was taken September 9, 1946, and after consideration thereof we referred the case back for the purpose of taking further testimony and to clarify certain matters of apparent importance. On March 3, 1947, the testimony was concluded and the matter is now before us for final disposition.

Findings of fact

1. George W. Williams is a resident of Hollidaysburg, the owner of real estate, and is engaged in business at the southwestern corner of the Diamond on Allegheny Street in Hollidaysburg.

2. Thomas M. Treese is a resident of Hollidaysburg, is the owner of real estate, and is engaged in business at the southeasterly corner of the Diamond in Hollidaysburg.

3. Frank W. Suckling is a resident of Hollidaysburg, is the owner of real estate, and is engaged in the clothing business at 314 Allegheny Street in Hollidaysburg.

4. Norman D. Wilt is a resident of Hollidaysburg, the owner of real estate, and conducts a place of business at 314 Allegheny Street in the Borough of Hollidaysburg.

5. The Borough of Hollidaysburg is a municipal corporation organized and existing under the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

6. The Borough of Hollidaysburg properly advertised Ordinance No. 169 relating to the installation of parking meters upon certain streets in the Borough of Hollidaysburg in the Hollidaysburg Register, with the exception of section 2 of said ordinance attempting to establish a parking meter zone on “Montgomery [107]*107Street between Spruce and Mulberry Streets, with the exception of that portion of Montgomery Street extending from the intersection of the alley between Walnut Street and Allegheny Streets to Allegheny Street”.

7. The said Ordinance No. 169 was properly passed and adopted at a meeting of the council of said borough on June 3, 1946, and approved June 4, 1946, by James W. Hayes, burgess, and enacted into law with the exception of section 2 referred to in the preceding paragraph.

8. The following streets, Allegheny, Mulberry, Walnut, Spruce, Penn, Union, Wayne, Montgomery, Front and Juniata, as set forth in Ordinance No. 169, are all public streets or highways in the Borough of Hollidaysburg.

9. The principal business street of said borough is Allegheny Street running east and west, between the intersection of Penn Street on the east and Juniata Street on the west, a distance of five city blocks.

10. Penn, Union, Wayne, Montgomery, Front and Juniata Streets run north and south, intersecting Allegheny Street in the business district of said borough.

11. There is heavy parking and congestion of vehicles on Allegheny Street between Penn and Juniata Streets, and that said portion of Allegheny Street is also used by an electric street railway.

12. The following streets on the north side of Allegheny Street to the south side of the alley running east and west between Allegheny and Walnut Streets, are adjacent to the principal business district of the borough and are regularly and continuously used for automobile parking by persons visiting the business district, and the placing of parking meters thereon, as approved by Borough Ordinance No. 169, would alleviate the parking congestion and add to the convenience of the traveling public, to wit: west side of Penn; west side of Union; east and west sides of Wayne; east and west side of Front Streets.

[108]*10813. The following streets on the south side of Allegheny Street to the north side of alley running east and west between Allegheny and Mulberry Streets are adjacent to the principal business district of the borough and are regularly and continuously used for automobile parking by persons visiting the business district, and the placing of parking meters thereon, as approved by Borough Ordinance No. 169, would alleviate the parking congestion and add to the convenience of the traveling public, to wit: east and west sides of Union; east and west sides of Wayne; east and west sides of Front Streets.

14. The Borough Ordinance No. 169, being invalid as to Montgomery Street, we cannot make any order for the establishing of parking meters thereon, but we do find as a fact that this street is adjacent to the principal business district of the borough and is regularly and continuously used for automobile parking by persons visiting the business districts, and that the placing of parking meters thereon, at least to a limited degree, would alleviate the parking congestion and add to the convenience of the traveling public.

15. The placing of parking meters upon the streets of Hollidaysburg, as set forth in paragraphs 11,12 and 13, supra, might be objectionable to those living and abutting on said streets but the installation of them, however, will be to aid the regulation of the highways and in the interest of the traveling public, and such regulation is not unreasonable or oppressive.

Discussion

The powers of the Borough of Hollidaysburg are vested in its corporate officers under The General Borough Act of May 4, 1927, P. L. 519, as amended, 53 PS §12222 et seq. Council is given specific power “to regulate roads, streets, lanes, alleys”, etc.: §13313 of above title. Under section 12896, par. 3, council is given the power “To make, revise, repeal and amend [109]*109such laws, rules, regulations and ordinances not inconsistent with the laws of the Commonwealth, as it shall deem beneficial to the borough and to provide for the enforcement of the same”.

Under paragraph 4, unless otherwise provided, council is required to publish “every enactment, regulation, ordinance or other general law at least ten days before the same shall take effect.” This is in accordance with the Act of May 18, 1933, P. L. 818, amending The General Borough Act, which provided for the publication in a newspaper and by “twelve advertisements posted in public places in the Borough.”

It was contended at the time of the argument by counsel for plaintiffs that it was a legal requirement that the ordinance be advertised and posted in 12 public places. In the amendment to the Borough Code Act of May 28, 1945, P. L. 1089, 53 PS §12896, subsection 4, the necessity of posting 12 advertisements was eliminated and is no longer required.

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Bluebook (online)
60 Pa. D. & C. 105, 1947 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 93, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/williams-v-borough-of-hollidaysburg-pactcomplblair-1947.