Wymbs v. Arvida Corp.

48 Fla. Supp. 110
CourtCircuit Court of the 15th Judicial Circuit of Florida, Palm Beach County
DecidedJuly 17, 1978
DocketNo. 76-3345 CA (L) 01-A
StatusPublished

This text of 48 Fla. Supp. 110 (Wymbs v. Arvida Corp.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Circuit Court of the 15th Judicial Circuit of Florida, Palm Beach County primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Wymbs v. Arvida Corp., 48 Fla. Supp. 110 (Fla. Super. Ct. 1978).

Opinion

TIMOTHY P. POULTON, Circuit Judge.

Findings of fact, conclusions of law, and final judgment: This matter having been fully tried before the court, and subsequent to trial the court, upon notice, having held hearings and considered each proposed finding of fact and conclusion of law, and having heard argument from the parties and having considered all portions of the evidence and citations of law related to each finding and conclusion, the court finds as follows —

The property that is the subject matter of this suit, known as Sabal Point, is located in Boca Raton, Palm Beach County, Florida, immediately to the north of the Boca Raton Inlet between the Atlantic Ocean to the east and Lake Boca Raton to the west.

The property is unimproved beachfront property that has been privately owned for many years, and of the more significant recent owners, the Schine family owned the property until 1956, at which time it was conveyed to Arvida Realty Co. which subsequently conveyed it to Arvida Corporation in 1964.

Arvida Corporation, the defendant herein, is the owner of the subject property under a warranty deed which was duly recorded in Palm Beach County, and it has paid the taxes on the property from the date of its ownership.

The plaintiffs are a class of persons who have used and who claim rights to continue to use footpaths across the subject property and the dry sand beach on the subject property. The representative plaintiffs that instituted this suit are members of that class who have adequately represented the interests of the other persons in the class.

While the plaintiffs claimed four specific footpaths described by them in the several complaints, and while some testimony was [112]*112presented that indicated that other clearings were occasionally used to walk across the property, plaintiffs’ counsel expressly waived and abandoned all claims to paths across the property, other than the two clearings shown on plaintiffs’ Exhibit 2 as located between the numbers placed thereon as 1-2-2 and 3-3, at the close of the plaintiffs’ case. No evidence supports any claim that other footpaths were present on the property for a sufficiently continuous period of time that they may be subject to claims of public rights, aerial photographs placed in evidence showed that no other clearings were present for the continuous period required to support such claims, and the plaintiffs’ motion to conform their pleadings to the evidence was granted at the close of the trial without objection. Thus, only two claims as to footpaths remain for consideration— claimed paths 1-2-2 and 3-3 as they will be referred to hereinafter referring to the numbers placed on plaintiffs’ Exhibit 2 as establishing their respective points of beginning and termination.

Further, plaintiffs abandoned all further claims to path 3-3 in their post-trial memorandum wherein they stated “It is not necessary for the court to decide the issue with regard to path number three” and “It is not necessary for us to pursue the issue of path number three.”

The plaintiffs in their complaint claimed rights to the entire dry sand portion of the beach on the subject property. However, no testimony of any frequency or regularity of use was presented as to any portion of the dry sand beach on the subject property except that portion between the jetty to the south, and the first red line to the north of the jetty placed upon plaintiffs’ Exhibit 2 by witnesses during their testimony. The plaintiffs moved to conform their pleadings to the proof, and the motion was granted without objection. Thus, there are no remaining claims for the court to consider as to portions of the dry sand beach other than that described hereinabove, and that portion will be described hereinafter as the “claimed beach.”

One witness, Mrs. Benedetto, testified that she and some other persons used the beach on the property immediately to the north of the Boca Raton Inlet in the early 1920’s. However, as the Boca Raton Inlet prior to 1928 had been approximately one-half mile south of the subject property and was not relocated to its present location until after that date, it is unclear whether this testimony related to the subject property or other property to the south. However, the testimony was further to the effect that during the early 1920’s there were very few persons living in the area, and they used all of the beaches which were open and unimproved at the time.

[113]*113In the late 1920’s and the 1930’s a wooden building was located on the subject property near its southeastern edge at the approximate location marked on plaintiffs’ Exhibit 2 by Sgt. Gallogly. The building was near the end of the old wooden bridge which also existed on the property near the curve in the waterway where Lake Boca Raton turns into the inlet. The wooden building was variously called the Griffin Place or the “Old Casino,” and a family who lived there operated a business from it including a gasoline station, the sale of bait, tackle and soda and a dance hall inside the building. They displayed signs on the building which included the words “Fishing” and “Swimming.” Persons who were attracted to the property bought gasoline, bait, tackle and soda from the persons who operated the business on the property. No evidence was presented as to whether the business was operated by or with the permission of the owner of the property at the time, and the Florida rule presuming such use to be with the permission of the owner must be applied.

The clearing which remained after the demolition of the “Old Casino” as well as the parking area that surrounded that building, are included within the path claimed by the plaintiffs as 1-2-2.

In 1930 the present inlet was dredged and the jetty was built by Arvida’s predecessor in title. Prior to 1930 an inlet had existed approximately one-half mile south of the present location.

In 1939 land was dedicated by conveyances to the State Road Department from the owner of Sabal Point at that time to create Old State Road A1A which was paved and thereafter until 1963 ran north and south along the length of Sabal Point and across the wooden bridge.

In 1953 large piles of sand and other material dredged from the inlet were located on the subject property at the approximate location marked on plaintiffs’ Exhibit 2 with a circle near the edge of the inlet. The sand piles drifted over the edge into the inlet requiring anyone to walk around them on the side away from the inlet. These sand piles were approximately 35 feet high and remained on the property for several years.

From the early 1950’s until 1956, several small businesses were operated on the subject property which was owned at the time by Mr. Schine. Captain Andy Brennan worked for Mr. Schine and operated a charter boat on the property with his permission. Charles Getchel operated a bait and tackle shop and refreshment stand on the property 250 feet from the northwest terminus of path 1-2-2 from 1950 to 1956. Mr. Schine said he had to charge Mr. Getchel something for using the property as a matter of “business.” Consequently, Mr. Getchel paid Mr. Schine $10 a month for use of the property, although Mr. Schine forgave him [114]*114from paying the rent for the last year he leased the property. During this period, Mr. Schine visited the property twice daily, and he never voiced any objection to other people using the property.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

State Ex Rel. Thornton v. Hay
462 P.2d 671 (Oregon Supreme Court, 1969)
State Highway Commission v. Bauman
517 P.2d 1202 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 1974)
American Oil Company v. Leaman
101 S.E.2d 540 (Supreme Court of Virginia, 1958)
Hudson v. American Oil Company
152 F. Supp. 757 (E.D. Virginia, 1957)
Downing v. Bird
100 So. 2d 57 (Supreme Court of Florida, 1958)
Kerrigan v. Thomas
281 So. 2d 410 (District Court of Appeal of Florida, 1973)
Munn v. Rateliff
446 S.W.2d 664 (Supreme Court of Arkansas, 1969)
City of Daytona Beach v. Tona-Rama, Inc.
271 So. 2d 765 (District Court of Appeal of Florida, 1972)
Waterman v. Smith
94 So. 2d 186 (Supreme Court of Florida, 1957)
City of Daytona Beach v. Tona-Rama, Inc.
294 So. 2d 73 (Supreme Court of Florida, 1974)
Mumaw v. Roberson
60 So. 2d 741 (Supreme Court of Florida, 1952)
Lee v. Smith
484 S.W.2d 38 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1972)
Owens v. Sterling, Langenbach
41 So. 2d 903 (Supreme Court of Florida, 1949)
Wicker v. Williams, Et Ux.
189 So. 30 (Supreme Court of Florida, 1939)
Winthrop v. Wadsworth
42 So. 2d 541 (Supreme Court of Florida, 1949)
J. C. Vereen & Sons, Inc. v. Houser
167 So. 45 (Supreme Court of Florida, 1936)
R. R. v. . Way
90 S.E. 937 (Supreme Court of North Carolina, 1916)
Tampa Mortgage & Title Co. v. Smythe
109 So. 2d 202 (District Court of Appeal of Florida, 1959)
Sunnybrook Groves, Inc. v. Hicks
113 So. 2d 239 (District Court of Appeal of Florida, 1959)
Cooper v. Davis
156 So. 2d 169 (District Court of Appeal of Florida, 1963)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
48 Fla. Supp. 110, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/wymbs-v-arvida-corp-flacirct15pal-1978.