People ex rel. Flower v. Bleckwenn

Headnote

Taxes and assessments—Sale of land for—Chap. 326, Laws 1874— Warrant not required for advertisement of sale.

Under chapter 326, Laws 1874, all lots on which an -assessment remains unpaid at the expiration of ten years from the filing of the assessment roll affecting such lots shall be advertised and sold for the payment of unpaid assessments, and the receiver of taxes requires no warrant for such advertisement and sale.

Appeal from an order of Mr. Justice Cullen, made the 26th day of November, 1887, directing a peremptory writ of mandamus to issue to Frederick W. Bleckwenn, receiver of taxes of Long Island City, commanding him to forthwith proceed to sell all such lots, pieces or parcels of land in Long Island City as are hable to be sold for assessments levied under and in pursuance of chapter 326 of the Laws of 1874, entitled “an act to provide for improvements in and adjoining the first ward of Long Island City,” and the several acts amendatory thereof and supplementary thereto.

The act of 1874 (chapter 326) provided for grading, sewering, paving, curbing and guttering the streets and avenues in the improvement district created by the act, by the survey commissioners of the city, who were continued in office for the purpose. In pursuance of the several acts relating to the improvements, the commissioners graded, sewered and curbed, guttered and paved such streets and avenues.

It was provided by the act of 1874 that the commissioners should estimate and ascertain the cost of such improvements and the incidental expenses and certify the amount to the assessors of the city, and the assessors were thereupon required to assess the amount upon the property benefitted (sec. 3). The assessors, after hearing objections,

if any, were required to prepare a corrected assessment roll and certify and acknowledge the same in the same manner and form as conveyances of real estate are required by law to be proved or acknowledged before being recorded, and thereupon file the same in the office of the treasurer and receiver of taxes of the city (sec. 4).

Under and in pursuance of the provisions of said several acts, the assessors assessed upon and charged against a large number of lots, pieces or parcels of land, a sum amounting in the aggregate to more than $100,000, and more than ten years have expired since the assessment rolls containing and relating to such assessments were filed, as provided by said acts. It also provided by said several acts that in order to pay the expenses of such improvements, said commississioners should issue, from time to time, certificates of indebtedness, which certificates should be known as “ Improvement Certificates in Long Island City,” and that the certificates of indebtedness so issued by said commissioners, in pursuance of said acts, should be paid and redeemed by the city treasurer from the fund created by the collection of such assessments. Sections 6, 7, 8. 9.

The commissioners, in pursuance of the provisions of said acts, issued certificates of indebtedness to an amount exceeding in the aggregate one and a half million dollars, of which a considerable part have been paid to the city treasurer of said city in satisfaction of assessments.

The relator, Roswell P. Flower, now owns and holds more than $50,000 worth of such certificates of indebtedness (fol. 16), and heretofore demanded of the receiver and treasurer that he should proceed to sell such property upon which there were assessments as remained in arrears for ten years from the date of the filing the assessment roll affecting it, but the treasurer refused to do so until he should be advised by the corporation counsel of the city that it was his duty to make such sale.