ABC Liquors, Inc. v. Skaggs-Albertson's, SKAGGS-ALBERTSON

• Decision Date: 02 August 1977
• Docket Number: No. 76-1383,SKAGGS-ALBERTSON,76-1383
• Citation: 349 So.2d 657
• Parties: ABC LIQUORS, INC. and Liquor World, Inc., Appellants, v.'S, Appellee.
• Court: Florida District Court of Appeals

Page 657

349 So.2d 657

ABC LIQUORS, INC. and Liquor World, Inc., Appellants, v. SKAGGS-ALBERTSON'S, Appellee.

No. 76-1383.

District Court of Appeal of Florida, Fourth District.

Aug. 2, 1977.

Rehearing Denied Sept. 22, 1977.

J. Sam Owens, Jr. of Fishback, Davis, Dominick & Simonet, Orlando, for appellant-ABC Liquors, Inc.

William L. Eagan of Arnold, Matheny & Eagan, P. A., Orlando, for appellant-Liquor World, Inc.

James A. Urban and James E. Slater of Maguire, Voorhis & Wells, P. A., Orlando, for appellee.

DAUKSCH, Judge.

On appeal is a decision of the Circuit Court quashing the decision of the Orange County Board of County Commissioners in a zoning case. We reverse.

ABC owns a liquor store which is located as shown below. Skaggs owns a grocery store and a liquor store. The liquor store is in the same building as the grocery store but has its own entrance and no access to the liquor store is made through the grocery store.

The Orange County Zoning Code provides no liquor store may be licensed to operate within 5000 feet of an established liquor store. Section 15, Article XXV, Zoning Resolution of Orange County. Section 4 of the zoning code provides the method by which the measurement of the 5000 feet is made.

"This distances (sic) provided in this Resolution shall be measured by following the shortest route of ordinary pedestrian travel along the public thoroughfare from the proposed main entrance of a vendor who proposes to operate his place of business and is licensed under Chapter 561, Florida Statutes, to the main entrance of any other vendor who is operating such a business."

We must decide whose interpretation of Section 4 is correct; the County Commission or the trial court.

Here is a drawing of the location of the properties and the lines drawn by the court and the Commission.

NOTE: OPINION CONTAINS TABLE OR OTHER DATA THAT IS NOT VIEWABLE

To the immediate north and west of the building on the Skaggs property is a sidewalk and a lined and laned parking lot. Beyond the lot are the public thoroughfares: Kirkman Road and West Colonial Drive.

The zoning code says the distance is measured by the "shortest route of ordinary pedestrian travel along the public thoroughfare." The trial judge reasoned that the distance must be measured by proceeding from the main entrance of Skaggs' liquor store to the nearest public thoroughfare and then along the public thoroughfare to the main entrance of ABC. We cannot agree with that interpretation. To require the pedestrian to go first westerly to get east when he can go northerly and easterly to east is making him walk too far. The trial judge applied a literal interpretation of the zoning ordinance while disregarding the logical. The distance from the main entrance of Skaggs to Kirkman is 200 feet while the distance from that entrance to Colonial (as drawn) is over 300 feet. That is what he founded his interpretation of the ordinance upon; he said:

"Uniformity can be achieved by always moving the 'ordinary pedestrian' in every case from entrance to entrance by means of the nearest public thoroughfare and not open that interpretation...