Chokecherry Hills Estates, Inc. v. Deuel County, 12951

• Decision Date: 16 July 1980
• Docket Number: No. 12951,12951
• Citation: 294 N.W.2d 654
• Parties: CHOKECHERRY HILLS ESTATES, INC., a corporation, Plaintiff and Appellant, v. DEUEL COUNTY, South Dakota, and Harry Lenning, Maurice Christiansen, Albert Konold, Andrew Raml, and Russell Peterson, as members of the Board of County Commissioners of Deuel County, South Dakota, a body politic and corporate, Defendants and Appellees.
• Court: South Dakota Supreme Court

Page 654

294 N.W.2d 654

CHOKECHERRY HILLS ESTATES, INC., a corporation, Plaintiff and Appellant, v. DEUEL COUNTY, South Dakota, and Harry Lenning, Maurice

Christiansen, Albert Konold, Andrew Raml, and Russell

Peterson, as members of the Board of County Commissioners of

Deuel County, South Dakota, a body politic and corporate,

Defendants and Appellees.

No. 12951.

Supreme Court of South Dakota.

Argued May 23, 1980.

Decided July 16, 1980.

Ronald C. Aho, Brookings, for plaintiff and appellant.

Dennis Evenson, Deuel County State's Atty., Clear Lake, for defendants and appellees.

DUNN, Justice.

This is an appeal from the lower court's order upholding the legality and constitutionality of the Natural Resources District zoning classification as applied to the appellant's property. We affirm.

Appellant is the equitable title holder of 223 acres of real estate situated in Deuel County, South Dakota. The property is situated along the north shore of Lake Oliver and involves approximately 160-170 rods of shoreline along the lake. The shore cover along the lake consists of chokecherry trees, shrubs, and other shore cover and terrain, and extends back from the high water mark of Lake Oliver approximately 200 feet. Of the 223 acres owned by the appellant, slightly in excess of 13 acres is lake frontage and the balance is devoted to agricultural use.

Appellant's purchase of the property was inspired by the desire to develop the 13 acres of lake frontage into home sites. Shortly after acquiring the property, appellant made initial application for a building permit. Prior to this time Deuel County had enacted a comprehensive zoning ordinance. Robert Kalhoff, president of Chokecherry Hills Estates, testified that he owned other land in Deuel County and was well aware when the land in question was purchased that this zoning ordinance existed.

The official zoning map for Deuel County had placed appellant's property into a natural resource classification. The Natural Resource District allowed for the following:

A. Permitted Uses

1. Wildlife production areas;

2. Game refuges;

3. Historic sites and/or monuments;

4. Designated natural prairies;

5. Public hunting and fishing access areas.

B. Uses Permitted by Special Permit if Deemed Not Detrimental to District

1. Transportation and utility easements and rights-of-way;

2. Utility substations;

3. Public parks and/or playgrounds;

4. Horticulture uses and livestock grazing.

Appellant then commenced proceedings to have the lake frontage rezoned from the natural resource classification to a Lake-Park District which lists the following as permitted uses:

A. Permitted Uses

1. Single-family residential usage, including permanent mobile homes;

2. Public and private parks;

3. Horticulture uses;

4. Commercial outdoor recreation areas similar to public areas.

B. Uses Permitted by Special Permit

The County Board of Adjustment may permit other uses which in its opinion are not detrimental to other uses and are in the general character of other uses in the LP District.

A public hearing was held by the Deuel County Planning and Zoning Commission on May 31, 1978, where it was recommended that the application be disapproved. A public hearing on the application was thereafter held by the Deuel County Board of County Commissioners on July 19, 1978. On August 1, 1978, the Deuel County Board of County Commissioners passed a resolution denying the application, and thereafter appellant initiated this proceeding to have the Natural Resource District classification of the comprehensive zoning ordinance declared to be unconstitutional as it applied to appellant's property.

When this matter was presented to the trial court on April 26, 1979, the reasons for the denial of the application by the zoning commission and the county commission were introduced into evidence. The zoning commission's disapproval was based on the following reasons:

That at the time the petitioners on the application purchased the land, they purchased knowing that the land was zoned a Natural Resource District, since the land was zoned before the purchasers bought the land.

That the north lake shore on Lake Oliver is not suitable for development as a Lake Park District for the following reasons: Lake Oliver is a small muddy lake; it is a lake shore having a steep bank making it impractical to maintain a beach or fishing dock.

That the highest and best use of the land is as agriculture and natural resource land.

That a development along the north shore will destroy the natural resource use by reducing the number of migratory birds nesting on Lake Oliver and reducing the habitat available to wildlife along the steep shore bank.

That the development of the north shore will effect the ecology of Lake Oliver. The development will result in higher use and more boats, resulting in a higher potention for pollution.

. . .

That the use of the area for farming is the highest use and the zoning laws must be upheld or the farmers in agriculture zoned districts will start developing for building, too.

The county commission denied the application for the following reasons:

(1) that the reasons as stated on the recommendation by the Deuel County Planning and Zoning Commission,

(2) that the evidence presented by the...