Mettee v. County Commissioners of Howard County

Henderson, J., delivered the opinion of the Court. This appeal in a zoning case is from a decree of the Circuit Court for Howard County declaring “the property which has been the subject matter of these proceedings, namely, all that property contained within the sixteen square mile area mentioned herein” to be “zoned as ‘R’ residential as originally classified under the Comprehensive Zoning Plan of January 12, 1954”. The decree also declared amendments to the original zoning plan adopted on July 27, 1954, and April 5, 1955, to be invalid. The appellants filed a bill of complaint on April 28, 1955, against the County Commissioners, the Planning Commission and the Zoning Commissioner, and Messrs.

Pumphrey, Chase, Maddox and Hawkins, challenging the validity of a resolution of the County Commissioners adopted April 5, 1955, rezoning a portion of a 242 acre tract of land known as the Pumphrey Farm and owned by the appellees, Chase, Maddox and Hawkins, from an “RR” district to an “R” district. The ³⁶⁰ farm is located at the northern end of, and within, a larger tract containing sixteen square miles, lying southeast of the Columbia Pike and southwest of the Old Annapolis Road. This larger tract had been originally zoned “R”, residential, with the exception of a few “B2”, commercial, areas, on January 12, 1954. It was rezoned “RR”, rural residential, on July 27, 1954, with the exception of a 200 foot strip along Old Annapolis Road, and two small areas at road intersections which were left in the “R” classification.

The primary difference between the two classifications is that in the “R” classification the minimum lot size is about one-half acre (20,000 square feet without utilities and 10,000 square feet with utilities), whereas in the “RR” classification the minimum lot size is one acre. (The utilities referred to are public sewer and water connections.) The appellees, Chase, Maddox and Hawkins, had contracted to buy the farm from Pumphrey on February 23, 1955. They filed an application for reclassification, in which Pumphrey joined, on the same day. The application was disapproved by the Zoning Commissioner and the Planning Commission, but approved by the County Commissioners, after hearing on March 23, 1955, by a vote of two to one.

The seventh paragraph of the bill alleged that no facts were adduced at that hearing to show a change of conditions, or that the “RR” classification was erroneous; that no testimony was produced to show that a change would be in the public interest; and that the Board’s action was illegal, arbitrary, and unconstitutional. An answer was filed by the appellees Chase, Maddox and Hawkins admitting most of the facts alleged, except those set out in the seventh paragraph, and alleging that the rezoning on July 27, 1954, was illegal and unconstitutional, because there was no change of conditions or mistake shown that would justify a rezoning, and because the reversal of the Board’s original classification of January 12, 1954, was made as the “result of a plebiscite”. The County Commissioners filed an answer denying the allegations of paragraph seven of the bill and alleging that their reclassification of July 27, 1954, was erroneous. Admitting that there were “no precise facts” before them to show any substantial change in the area between July 27, ³⁶¹ 1954, and March 23, 1955, they allege that there were likewise no substantial changes between January 12, 1954, and July 27, 1954.

The respondents Chase, Maddox and Hawkins also filed a cross-bill alleging that the change in classification made by the County Commissioners on July 27, 1954, “purporting to change the zoning of the farm of your Cross-Complainants, and other properties nearby, is illegal, nugatory, arbitrary, unconstitutional and void”, and praying that the court declare the resolution void, and require the Zoning Commissioner to amend the zoning map accordingly. The cross-respondents filed a demurrer and answer, setting up laches and estoppel, among other things, and asserting that the court lacked jurisdiction to enter a declaratory decree, affecting the properties of persons not parties to the suit in an area of sixteen square miles, and circumventing the administrative processes. The answer also challenged the standing of the cross-complainants to attack the validity of the resolution of July 27, 1954. The County Commissioners filed an answer to the cross-bill, admitting some of the allegations, calling for proof of others, and generally standing upon the allegations of their answer to the original bill, containing the admission that their rezoning of July 27, 1954, had been erroneous.

There is little dispute as to the basic facts brought out in the hearing in the court below. As noted in Wakefield v. Kraft, 202 Md. 136, 139 , the first zoning map for Howard County was adopted July 27, 1948, with simple classifications, Residential, Commercial A and Commercial B. In 1953, Mr. C. William Brooks, a recognized expert, who had a hand in the original zoning, was again employed as a zoning adviser. Mr. James Macgill, the first Zoning Commissioner, had then been succeeded by Mr. Custer. Mr. Brooks recommended that the sixteen square mile area in question be designated as “RR”, but Mr. Custer disagreed.

At a public hearing on January 9, 1954, Mr. Macgill, who had been the first Zoning Commissioner and subsequently became counsel to the Planning Commission, urged the protestants “not to delay this matter”, pointing out that a change would probably require readvertising and a further hearing. He stated that “for the present the ³⁶² residence [lot] area in Howard County is only 5,000 square •feet and personally I think it is much wiser to go ahead and take what protection is offered. * * * let us get this thing through and let the dust settle and take another look at it and then make the changes that need to be made.” The County Commissioners, and in fact all the persons present, agreed to this suggestion. On January 12, 1954, the County Commissioners adopted the classification proposed by Mr. Custer, and the new zoning map was adopted. See Board of Zoning Appeals v. Meyer, 207 Md. 389, 393 .

On January 21, 1954, Mr. Dawson Lee, along with other objectors at the hearing on January 9, made application to have the area rezoned “RR”. This was opposed by Mr. Custer and the Planning Commission.'A public hearing was duly held oh February 18, 1954. Counsel for the protestants stated he could affirmatively show that “an ’overwhelming number of the landowners, * * * in that section desire this change”. The Board did not render a decision at that time.

On May 17, 1954, Mr. Raphel, who succeeded Mr. Custer as Zoning Commissioner on May 15, 1954, was directed by a member of the Planning Commission to tabulate the number of objectors and the amount of land owned by them in the area. The results showed that a large majority of the owners favored the change. There was some testimony that it was favored by 95%. On July 12, 1954, the Zoning Commissioner and the Planning Commission recommended approval of the Lee petition, and the change was approved by the County Commissioners on July 27, 1954. .

The evidence produced at the hearing below showed that the sixteen square mile area had always been rural and agricultural in character, with rather large farms, chiefly dairy farms, and country estates. There was testimony that there were only about 250 families in the entire area. There has been ho change in the character of the area, with the exception of 'two subdivisions laid out at the intersection of two intersecting highways, which were excepted in the rezoning of July 27, 1954. The Chancellor found that there had been no fundamental change in conditions since the original zoning in January, 1954, and that there was no mistake in the original zon ³⁶³ ing.

He held that the subsequent actions were invalid, and the whole area should revert to its original status. Whether the Chancellor was justified in entering a decree declaring that the whole sixteen square mile area be zoned “R” is open to serious question. The bill of complaint sought relief only as to the Pumphrey farm, and the cross-bill did not seek relief except as to “the farm of your cross-complainants and other properties nearby”. Moreover, Art. 14, sec. 360, et seq. of the local law for Howard County, as enacted by Ch. 19, Acts of 1948 and Ch. 604, Acts of 1953, differentiates between cases where applications are made to the Zoning Commissioner and Board of Zoning Appeals, and cases where the County Commissioners establish the boundaries of districts and prescribe the uses therein.

Sec. 361 provides that in the latter case the Commissioners shall hold a public hearing after published notice, and “shall have the power to amend, supplement or repeal the regulations or restrictions adopted by them, provided that before doing so they shall follow the same procedure with respect to notice and public hearings as is herein provided for the original regulations and restrictions.” This statutory procedure was not followed by the cross-complainants, who for the first time in their cross-bill attacked the validity of the rezoning of July 27, 1954. The only official action taken since that date by the County Commissioners was a reclassification of the area comprising the Pumphrey farm, and it may well be that the court below was confined to a consideration of that question. We noted in Baltimore v. Seabolt, 210 Md. 199, 210 , that there are at least some limits to declaratory relief in this field, particularly where it by-passes administrative action. We find it unnecessary to consider the point, however, since we do not agree with the Chancellor’s finding that the rezoning of July 27, 1954, was arbitrary and invalid.

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