Zoning Administrator v. Ireland

Morton, J., delivered the opinion of the Court. The immediate issue in this appeal is whether the chancellor, sitting in the Circuit Court for Carroll County, committed an abuse of judicial discretion when he denied on July 11,1980, the motion of Zoning Administrator of Carroll County, appellant, for an interlocutory injunction against Lawrence E. Ireland, appellee. Through the interlocutory injunction the zoning administrator sought to prevent an alleged violation by Ireland "of the Zoning Ordinance of Carroll County by the holding of an arts and craft — folk festival on July 12 and July 13, 1980, on property in the Conservation Zoning District, such use not being permitted by the regulations for the Conservation Zoning District.” The seminal action which ultimately brought the issue before this Court occurred when the Zoning Administrator for Carroll County refused, on February 11, 1980, to issue a zoning certificate to Ireland authorizing him to conduct an "Irish arts and craft — folk festival” on his 153 acre farm because such an activity was not permitted in the Conservation Zoning District in which the farm is located. The zoning administrator’s refusal to issue the certificate was affirmed by the Carroll County Board of Zoning Appeals on March 18, 1980.

Ireland then appealed to the Circuit Court for Carroll County and that court, in Law No. 24226, affirmed the decision of the Board of Zoning Appeals on May 26, 1980. An appeal from that decision was taken by Ireland to this Court and is now pending. On June 5,1980, the zoning administrator filed a petition in the Circuit Court for Carroll County praying that an injunction be issued enjoining Ireland from conducting the arts and craft — folk festival which he proposed to hold on his farm on July 12 and 13, 1980. An order was filed by the court on June 17, 1980, requiring Ireland to show cause by June 30, 1980, why the injunction should not be granted. 1 Ireland filed an answer on June 25, 1980. ⁴³¹ Under date of July 7, 1980, the presiding chancellor addressed a letter to counsel for the zoning administrator with copies to other counsel of record, in which he stated: "In response to your telephone request of this date this will confirm that the Court will be unable to hold a hearing and consider your request for a permanent injunction prior to July 12, 1980.

It appears from the pleadings that the parties should be afforded a full and complete hearing before the Court decides the underlying issues, and as I have previously indicated, there is nothing in the pleadings which requests or establishes the basis for interlocutory relief.” On the same date counsel for the zoning administrator filed an appeal to this Court from what he deemed to be a refusal by the chancellor "to issue an injunction enjoining the holding of a festival by Respondents [Ireland] on July 12 and July 13, 1980.” Under date of July 11, 1980, this Court granted the motion of counsel for the zoning administrator to advance argument and for the immediate transmittal of the record. Oral arguments by counsel for all parties were heard by this Court during the morning of July 11,1980. On the same date we issued an order on the basis of Maryland Rule 1035 b.l. (see Jones v. Wright, 35 Md. App. 313 (1977) and DiTommasi v. DiTommasi, 27 Md. App. 241 (1975)), dismissing the appeal "as not allowed by law.” Immediately thereafter counsel for the zoning administrator returned to the Circuit Court for Carroll County and filed therein a "Motion for Interlocutory Injunction,” seeking to stay the festival at the Ireland farm which was scheduled to begin the next day.

Counsel for Ireland