In re Auburn City Railway Co. — 69 N.Y. St. Rep. 105

Majority

p. 105

In the Matter of the Auburn City Railway Company.

(Supreme Court, General Term, Fifth Department,

Filed July 6, 1895.)

Headnote

Railroads—Street—Construction.

The consent of the municipal authorities to the construction of a street, railroad is not a prerequisite to the appointment of commissioners to determine whether the road ought to be built, and the question whether or not it has been given, does not necessarily arise upon motion to confirm their report.

Motion for a re-argument

John D. Teller, for motion; E. C. Aiken, opposed.

J. — On the coming in of the report of the commissioners appointed in this proceeding, and after hearing counsel for the parties, the report was confirmed. This motion for reargument is founded upon the apprehension that certain preliminary questions or objections may not have had consideration, in granting upon the merits the motion to confirm the report of the commissioners, and especially the question sought to be raised of ,as

p. 106

serted variance between the route of the railway described in the petition and that on which it is said the petitioner proposes to construct its railway.

The Auburn City Railway Company was organized upon the consolidation of the Bast Genesse Street & Steward Avenue Railway and the Auburn & Owasco Lake Railway, pursuant to Laws 1886, chap. 163. The petition by which this proceeding was instituted, after stating the streets of the city in which it has, since the organization of the company, operated its railway, states that the petitioner proposes to extend its railroad from the corner of State street, west, through West Genesse street, to South Division street, near the west boundary of the city; ” that application had been made to the common council of the city of Auburn “to consent to the construction and operation of said railroad of your petitioner, and a hearing has been advertised as required bylaw.” And after stating that diligent efforts had been made, in behalf of the petitioner, to obtain consent of the owners of the property bounded on that portion of the street upon which it is proposed to •construct and operate its railroad, it is alleged that “the consent of the required owners of property cannot be obtained to permit the contruction of the proposed railroad." The contestants answered the petition and thereupon, on application, an order was made appointing commissioners to determine whether a street railway ought to be constructed on West Genesee street. The commissioners were thereby directed to take the evidence touching all questions of fact raised by the answer, and it was by the order provided that all questions of law and fact arising upon the petition' and answer be heard and determined by the court at the time the application should be made for confirmation of their report, as fully as if they had been heard before the commissioners were appointed, and that “it appears that objections based upon both law and fact were raised by such answer to the appointment of said commissioners, and that the hearing, trial, and determination of such questions and objections should be postponed until the confirmation of the report of the commissioners is applied for, without prejudice to any of said objections by reason of such postponement.” It is said that the company proposes and intends to construct its road beyond South Division street,, and to the west bounds of Cayuga County Agricultural & Horticultural Grounds, which is some distance westerly of that street, and that the consent of the municipal authorities of that city of Auburn is for the construction of a railroad to the west bounds of such grounds. This fact did not appear in the evidence before the commissioners. The petitioner offered in evidence a statement of a proposed ex-tention and franchise granted by the common council, and it was excluded upon the objection of the contestants. The contestants seek, upon the application for confirmation of the commissioners’ report, to raise this question, and thereupon to urge^ as an objection to the confirmation, that no consent of the municipal authorities, other than the one for the construction of the railroad extending to the west line of those county grounds, were given; that it does not appear that the requisite consents could not be ob-

p. 107

tamed to construct the railroad to that point, or that any effort was made to obtain consents lor the construction of a railroad described in the petition. No such objections were taken upon the application for the appointment of the commissioners, nor did any facts appear upon that application in support of such objections. Reference, however, is made to the order by which it is claimed that the consideration of them was postponed until the application for the continuation of the report should be made, and then to be presented and determined. Such seem to be the saving provisions of the order as to such objections as are raised by the answer. By if the contestants admit that the company had made application to the common council of the city “ to consent to the construction and operation of said railroad, and a hearing thereon has been advertised as required by layq but alleged that said application is for the construction and operation of a railroad from the corner of State and Genesee streets, through Genesee street, to the west bounds of the Cayuga County Agricultural & Horticultural Grounds,—a point some distance west of the western terminus of the railroad described in the petition.” This fact so affirmatively alleged did not appear upon the hearing before the commissioners, nor did it appear there what consent had been given by the municipal authorities, nor was any objection specifically taken by the answer to the effect that no application had been made to the common council, or none given by it for the construction of a railroad in West Genesee street, as described in the petition. The hearing before the commissioners proceeded in reference to the latter route, and after taking the evidence, etc., they by their report, determined “that the railroad described in the petition ought to be constructed and operated.” It seems that whether the petitioner contemplated the extension of its railroad beyond the western terminus mentioned in the petition, or whether application therefor was made to, and had the consent of, the common council, are not here for consideration on the application for confirmation of the commissioners. The requirement preliminary to the application for the appointment of commissioners in such a case is the fact that the requisite consent of the property owners cannot be obtained. When that appears, the commissioners shall be appointed. Laws 1890, chap. 565, § 94. That is the only prerequisite to the appointment. In re Thirty-Fourth St. R. Co., 102 N. Y. 343 . The allegation in the petition that the requisite consent of the owners of property could not be obtained to permit the construction of the proposed railroad was supported before the commissioners by the concession there made and entered in the minutes of the proceedings,—“that the consent of the requisite number of property owners cannot be obtained to consent to the proposed railroad by the petitioner.” The preliminary fact essential to the appointment of the commissioners, and in support of their report in that respect, was thus made to appear and established. The consent of the municipal authorities is a prerequisite to the construction, extension, or operation of the railroad. Laws 1890, chap. 565, § 90. But, as such consent is not necessary to the appointment of the commissioners, the question whether or

p. 108

not it has been given does not necessarily arise upon motion to confirm their report.

Our attention is called to In re Cross-Town Ry. Co., 68 Hun,. 236 ; 52 St. Rep. 295 , as authority in opposition to the .motion to-confirm the report. There the petitioner, having.obtained by purchase ¡the right-to construct a railroad in Prospect avenue, from Huron street to Pennsylvania street, in the city of Buffalo, ,-and having obtained the .consent of the authorities of ,ihe city of Buffalo to .construct it, made application for the,appointment of.commissioners, in a proceeding instituted for the purpose. The length of .that route in the avenue was nearly 4,000 feet. The ¡proceeding was abandoned, and upon petition another application was made ;for the appointment of commissioners to determine whether a railroad .ought,to be laid and operated in the avenue between Huron street and Carolina street,—a .distance of 1,175 feet. The application was denied, and the reasons for the denial, as given in the opinion of the court, were (1) that the petitioner had failed ¡to show that it had made ineffectual effort to obtain the -necessary consents of the property owners along the -avenue -from Huron street .to Pennsylvania street, and for .aught appeared, -they might, have been obtained; (2) that no consent .of the city authorities had been .obtained to any change of -the .route, and it could not be .assumed that they would consent to construct a railroad only between Harón and Carolina streets;, (3) that it did not-appear that the petitioner had abandoned any part of its right to construct .a railroad in the avenue ; (4) and that it was not within .the.contemplation of the statute that .the petitioner should have-the right, for the purpose of distinct proceedings, -to divide the route thus acquired in the avenue into .sections. Ho general principle was enunicated by the conrt in that case. It was disposed of upon its own peculiar circumstances, and, in view .of them, it is deemed well decided. Unless something appears to take a case-of this nature out of the operation of the general rule, the main question is whether ft i,s made to appear that .the requisite consent of the property owners cannot be obtained. The main reason for the denial of the application in the Cross-Town St. Ry. Co. Case may have been in the fact that it did not appear that .the petitioner could not obtain the requisite consent .of the property owners for the construction of the railroad between foe-termini of the route in foe avenue where it appeared -that ¡the petitioner had obtained foe right and consent other .than that .of foe property owners to construct it. In foe present case no such objection was specifically raised upon the application for foe appointment of commissioners, or in .the answer to the petition ; and it appeared on the hearing before foe-commissioners that the requisite consents, of .the property ..owners to the construction of foe proposed railroad .could not be obtained by foe petitioner, as before mentioned. For the purpose .of the question ¡here, .the proposed railroad .must be deemed that to which the proceeding and the bearing had before foe commissioners related. And it cannot now we.ll be insisted by foe .contestants ,in .this proceeding that it did not appear font ,foe -petitioner could no,t,obtain such requisite .consents.

p. 109

Ho other question requires consideration on this motion. The motion for reargument should therefore be denied.

All concur.

Cases cited

In re Thirty-fourth Street Railroad 102 N. Y. 343 N.Y. 1886-06-01 p. 107