Belford v. City of New Haven

• Citation: 170 Conn. 46,364 A.2d 194
• Court: Supreme Court of Connecticut
• Decision Date: 30 December 1975
• Parties: , 7 Envtl. L. Rep. 20,084 Richard BELFORD et al. v. CITY OF NEW HAVEN et al.

Page 194

364 A.2d 194

170 Conn. 46, 7 Envtl. L. Rep. 20,084

Richard BELFORD et al. v. CITY OF NEW HAVEN et al.

Supreme Court of Connecticut.

Dec. 30, 1975.

Hans C. F. Wriedt, Westport, with whom, on the brief, were Richard L. Hershatter, New Haven, Peter A. Penczer, Westport, and Donald H. Tamis, Bridgeport, for appellants (plaintiffs).

Roger J. Frechette, Corp. Counsel, and Charles G. Albom, Sp. Asst. Corp. Counsel, New Haven, for appellees (defendants).

Before HOUSE, C.J., and LOISELLE, BOGDANSKI, LONGO and BARBER, JJ.

BARBER, Associate Justice.

The plaintiffs, who are residents and taxpayers of the city of New Haven, have brought this action to prevent the defendant city from implementing a proposed agreement with the International Rowing Course Foundation, Inc., for the construction of an Olympic-sized rowing course in two of the city's parks. Specifically, the plaintiffs seek to enjoin the city and its mayor from leasing portions of Edgewood Park and West River Memorial Park to the foundation and permitting the foundation to construct a rowing course thereon. The plaintiffs also seek an order remanding the plans for the rowing course to the commissioner of environmental protection for a finding as to its impact upon the public's trust in the air, water or other natural resources of the state, as well as other injunctive relief. The plaintiffs' complaint includes an allegation that '(t)he plaintiffs are residents and taxpayers of the defendant City of New Haven, are members of the public for whose benefit the public parks within said city are operated, managed and maintained, and are persons for whom a public trust has been established in the protection, preservation and enhancement of the air, water and other natural resources of the State of Connecticut within the meaning and intendment of Section 22a-15 of the General Statutes of Connecticut'. The court found that the plaintiffs lacked standing to question the proposed changes in the parks and had not proved any claim under the Environmental Protection Act of 1971, and therefore rendered judgment for the defendants, from which judgment the plaintiffs have appealed.

The finding of facts by the trial court is somewhat lengthy. It is subject to only minor corrections. ¹ We include in this opinion only a summary of the material facts necessary for a proper determination of the issues involved.

The International Rowing Course Foundation, Inc., is a nonprofit organization. An agreement between the city of New Haven and the International Rowing Course Foundation, Inc., gives the foundation the right and obligation to promote, organize and operate competitive and exhibition rowing events at a course to be built in Edgewood Park and West River Memorial Park, and to use its best efforts to attract Olympic, international, national and major sectional events to the rowing course. Edgewood Park and West River Memorial Park are contiguous and together comprise the third largest park in New Haven. Three-quarters of the 295 total acres in the two parks are classified as tidal wetlands, portions of which are covered with reed grass, weeds and water and are not used by people. The park presently contains various athletic and recreational facilities, including a rowing course, built in the 1920's, used by the New Haven Rowing Club. The proposed rowing course will require 105 acres and will expand the present rowing course by dredging to a depth of 8 feet, width of 420 feet, and legnth of 2000 meters (1.2 miles). Plans for the rowing course include stands for approximately five thousand spectators. The agreement provides for the construction of a 'mini Olympic village' for unrestricted public use. The facilities in the village will consist of an Olympic-sized swimming pool, a baseball field, a football field surrounded by a track, a softball field, a little league field, and a field house with a caretaker's apartment. The plan calls for the demolition of a bridge on Chapel Street and the construction of a roadway trhough the park. The cost of the proposed improvement to be paid for by the foundation is now put at ten million dollars. The foundation will charge admission fees of which 5 percent will accrue to the city. The city can anticipate receiving five thousand dollars per year from admission fees. The agreement provides that the foundation will have exclusive use of the rowing course from March until the end of June, except on Sundays after 1 p.m. when not reserved; and that from July 1 to October 31, ordinary boating will be permitted on the rowing course all day Saturday and Sunday, weekdays after 1 p.m., and weekday mornings except when reserved. The public has complained about the water condition in Edgewood Park due to tidal action as a result of the failure of the city to repair the West River tide gates. The city has not repaired the tide gates because it felt this repair would be the foundation's responsibility. The rowing course area has limited widlife value in its present state and minimal damage to widlife resources would occur as a result of the proposed dredging. There will be no permanent damage caused by dredging if the excess material is carted away. The project will have no effect as far as air pollution is concerned.

All of the plaintiffs are residents and taxpayers of the city of New Haven who oppose the construction of the rowing course. One of the plaintiffs owns property abutting the park area.

The court concluded that the use of the parks for a rowing course is a park use, that the plaintiffs did not prove that the proposed change in the parks or the failure to repair the tide gates have caused them to suffer substantial damage distinct from that sustained in common by the public, and that the plaintiffs therefore do not have standing to question the proposed changes in the parks or the failure to repair the tide gates. The court also concluded that although the plaintiffs, or some of them, might be aggrieved by the discontinuance of a part of Chapel Street, they are premature in challenging the proposed discontinuance in this action, and that the plaintiff have not proved any claim under the Environmental Protection Act of 1971. The plaintiffs did not make any claims of law respecting the judgment to be rendered.

Although the plaintiffs made no claims of law respecting the judgment to be rendered, we are constrained to consider the merit of their claims on appeal because of the public interest involved. See Practice Book § 223; State v. Dukes, 157 Conn. 498, 501-502, 255 A.2d 614. The plaintiffs now claim that the court erred in reaching its conclusions and in rendering judgment for the defendants. There is no claim of error, however, directed against the conclusion of the court that although some of the plaintiffs might be aggrieved by the demolition of the bridge over West River they are premature in challenging the proposal on the ground that they may take an appeal from such discontinuance only after the street has been formally discontinued.

The plaintiffs have pursued three issues on appeal. They claim: (1) that the proposed rowing course constitutes a diversion of park lands from proper park purposes, in violation of restrictive covenants in some of the deeds conveying the park land to the city and in violation of the statute of charitable uses; (2) that the proposal involves an unlawful delegation by the city to the foundation of the city's exclusive authority and duty to manage, control and police the park lands; and (3) that the construction of the rowing course will result in the pollution and destruction of the city's natural resources.

The argument that the rowing course is not a proper park purpose is not persuasive. "In the common understanding, a park, in this country, is a piece of ground in or near a city or town for ornament and as a place . . . for recreation and amusement, and it is usually laid out in walks, drives and recreation grounds." Fenwick v. Old Saybrook, 133 Conn. 22, 29, 47 A.2d 849, 853; Baker v. Norwalk, 152 Conn. 312, 316, 206 A.2d 428. The use of parks for many recreational or educational facilities has been recognized in various instances to be proper and legitimate. 59 Am.Jur.2d, Parks, Squares, Etc., § 22; 10 McQuillin, Municipal Corporations (3d Ed., 1966 Rev.) § 28.52b. See Sierra Club v. Hickel, 433 F.2d 24 (9th Cir.) (large scale commercial-recreational development); Cascambas v. Newport, 45 R.I. 343, 121 A. 534 (lease of public beach); 795 Fifth Avenue Corporation v. New York, 13 A.D.2d 733, 215 N.Y.S.2d 391 (lease of park property for restaurant purposes).

The question of whether the rowing course is or is not a proper park purpose is not before this court, however, since the plaintiffs do not have the requisite standing to raise the issue....