Cayuga Indian Nation v. Village of Union Springs, 5:03-CV-1270.
| Decision Date | 23 April 2004 |
| Docket Number | No. 5:03-CV-1270.,5:03-CV-1270. |
| Citation | 317 F.Supp.2d 128 |
| Parties | CAYUGA INDIAN NATION OF NEW YORK, Plaintiff, v. VILLAGE OF UNION SPRINGS; Town of Springport; and County of Cayuga New York, Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Northern District of New York |
Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthall LLP, Attorneys for Plaintiff, New York, Raymond J. Heslin, Esq., Stephen L. Brodsky, Esq., of counsel.
Hiscock & Barclay, LLP, Attorneys for Defendants Village of Union Springs, Town of Springport and Town of Cayuga New York, Syracuse, Alan R. Peterman, Esq., Judith M. Sayles, Esq., of counsel.
The plaintiff, the Cayuga Indian Nation of New York ("the Nation"), a federally recognized Indian tribe,1 filed suit against defendants, Village of Union Springs, Town of Springport, and County of Cayuga ("defendants"), seeking declaratory and injunctive relief regarding the nature of use of property that plaintiff owns within defendants' municipal boundaries ("the Property"). Defendants filed a counterclaim seeking declaratory and injunctive relief against plaintiff. Several motions in this action were denied, including various motions to dismiss by defendants as well as a motion by plaintiff and a cross motion by defendants for a preliminary injunction. See Cayuga Indian Nation of New York v. Village of Union Springs, et al., 293 F.Supp.2d 183 (N.D.N.Y.2003).
On December 11, 2003, the Nation filed the present motion for summary judgment pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 56, and thereafter, on January 21, 2004, defendants filed a cross motion for a preliminary injunction pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 65(a)(2).
Oral argument was heard regarding the pending motions on April 7, 2004 in Utica, New York. Decision was reserved.
The Property is located within the 64,015 acres that were the subject of extensive land claim litigation ("the Land Claim" or "Cayuga Land Claim"), to which the plaintiff and all defendants in this case were also parties.2 See Cayuga Indian Nation of New York v. Pataki, et al., 188 F.Supp.2d 223 (N.D.N.Y.2002) ("Cayuga XVII"). Plaintiffs3 in that case sought a declaration of their ownership and right to possess the subject land, as well as monetary relief, based on certain land conveyances which they alleged violated the Nonintercourse Act, now codified at 25 U.S.C. § 177. See Cayuga Indian Nation of New York v. Cuomo, 565 F.Supp. 1297, 1301 (N.D.N.Y.1983) ("Cayuga I"). According to the Land Claim plaintiffs, the historic Cayuga Indian Nation ("the Cayugas")4 occupied the subject land "since time immemorial." See Cayuga, 565 F.Supp. at 1302. By a 1789 treaty with the State of New York, the Cayugas "cede[d] and grant[ed] all their lands to the People of the State of New York forever," and the State reserved to the Cayugas "for their use and cultivation" approximately 64,000 acres near Cayuga Lake. See Cayuga Indian Nation of New York v. Pataki, 165 F.Supp.2d 266, 315, 322 (N.D.N.Y.2001) ("Cayuga XVI"). In 1790, Congress enacted the Nonintercourse Act, which made illegal any land transaction with an Indian nation or tribe that was not ratified by the United States. See 25 U.S.C. § 177 (2003).
Thereafter, by the 1794 Treaty of Canandaigua, the United States recognized the approximately 64,000-acre area as the Cayugas' reservation. See Cayuga XVI, 165 F.Supp.2d at 328. The Land Claim court specifically held that the Treaty of Canandaigua conferred treaty-recognized title in the subject land to the Cayugas. See Cayuga Indian Nation of New York v. Cuomo, et al., 758 F.Supp. 107, 115 (N.D.N.Y.1991) ("Cayuga IV"). In 1795 and 1807, the Cayugas' reservation land was sold to the State of New York. See Cayuga Indian Nation of New York v. Cuomo, 730 F.Supp. 485 (N.D.N.Y.1990) ("Cayuga III"). Those conveyances were never ratified by the United States,5 however, and as such, the court in the Land Claim held that they were in violation of the Nonintercourse Act, and thus are void ab initio, as though they never occurred. See Cayuga Indian Nation of New York v. Pataki, 79 F.Supp.2d 78, 84 (N.D.N.Y.1999) ("Cayuga XII"); Cayuga III, 730 F.Supp. at 492-493. Although the Land Claim defendants were found liable for Nonintercourse Act violations, the court held that ejectment was not an available remedy, limiting plaintiffs' remedy solely to monetary damages. See Cayuga Indian Nation of New York v. Cuomo, Nos. 80-CV-930, 80-CV-960, 1999 WL 509442, at *30 (N.D.N.Y. July 1, 1999) ("Cayuga X"). After the Land Claim court, in the interest of efficiency, agreed to separate trials regarding damages, a jury awarded damages against the State defendants in the amount of $36,911,672.62, and the court thereafter awarded $211,000,326.80 in prejudgment interest. See Cayuga XII, 79 F.Supp.2d at 74-77; Cayuga XVII, 188 F.Supp.2d at 228. An appeal to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in the Land Claim case is currently pending. See Cayuga Indian Nation of New York v. Pataki, 02-CV-6111 (2d Cir.).
On April 28, 2003, the Nation reacquired the Property in fee simple by indenture and thereafter began renovations to a portion of the Property located at 271 Cayuga Street in Union Springs. See Compl. at ¶¶ 23, 27; Aff. of Clint Halftown, Oct. 17 2003, ¶ 5. Defendant, Cayuga County designates the parcel as 141.05-1-3. See Aff. of Raymond J. Heslin, Dec. 11, 2003, Ex. B. On October 9, 2003, and October 15, 2003, the Village of Union Springs ("the Village") issued to the Nation Stop Work Orders and Orders to Remedy Violations, citing violations of zoning ordinances and local laws. See Halftown Aff., Ex. B. The Orders to Remedy Violations contained language that directed the Nation to remedy the alleged violations and give written notice to the Village in compliance with the applicable provisions of law before October 20, 2003 and October 25, 2003, respectively, or be subject to punishment in the form of a fine and/or imprisonment. See id.
On October 20, 2003, the Nation filed the present suit. The complaint sets forth a claim for declaratory relief, seeking a declaration that (1) the Property is Indian Country pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 1151(a), and as such, the Nation possesses jurisdiction and the right to self government thereon; (2) defendants are without authority to enforce "zoning and land use laws, ordinances, rules, regulations or other requirements which seek or purport to regulate, control, or otherwise interfere with activities by or on behalf of the Nation occurring on the Property"; and (3) defendants efforts to do so are null and void. The Nation also seeks an injunction enjoining defendants from applying or enforcing any "zoning and land use laws, ordinances, rules, regulations or other requirements which seek or purport to regulate, control, or otherwise interfere with activities by or on behalf of the Nation occurring on the Property" including the commencement of any actions to apply or enforce said laws, and mandating that defendants void and rescind all documents issued or acts taken to apply or enforce said laws. Finally, the Nation seeks attorneys fees and costs as well as sanctions against defendants.
With the filing of its complaint, the Nation contemporaneously sought an order to show cause why defendants should not be preliminarily enjoined from applying or enforcing their zoning and land use laws against the Nation regarding renovations to the Property and a temporary restraining order ("TRO") pending a hearing on same. The Nation's request for an order to show cause was granted, and sua sponte a TRO was issued against the Nation, enjoining it from further construction, renovation, or demolition activities on the Property pending a hearing regarding the preliminary injunction motion. On October 29, 2003, defendants filed a counterclaim seeking declaratory and injunctive relief against plaintiff, along with a cross motion for dismissal and/or a preliminary injunction. Defendants' counterclaim seeks a declaration that (1) there is currently no Cayuga reservation in the State of New York; (2) neither the Property nor any other land referred to by the 1789 treaty between New York and the Cayugas is currently Indian Country; (3) the Nation does not have jurisdiction or the right to self government over the Property; and (4) the Property is subject to defendants' zoning and local land use laws. By their counterclaim, defendants also seek an order enjoining the Nation "from carrying out or causing to be carried out any construction on the [Property] without obtaining all permits and approvals required by the Village's Zoning Ordinance and local land use laws." The Nation thereafter requested that defendants' counterclaim be dismissed due to tribal sovereign immunity. On November 28, 2003, all of the aforementioned motions, as well as the Nation's request for sanctions, were denied. See Village of Union Springs, 293 F.Supp.2d 183.
Two weeks later, the Nation filed the present motion for summary judgment on its declaratory judgment claim, seeking...
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