Case Name: STATE of Florida, BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF the INTERNAL IMPROVEMENT TRUST FUND, Appellant, v. KEY WEST CONCH HARBOR, INC., Appellee
Court: Florida District Court of Appeal
Jurisdiction: Florida
Decision Date: 1996-06-19
Citations: 683 So. 2d 144
Docket Number: No. 95-1275
Parties: STATE of Florida, BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF the INTERNAL IMPROVEMENT TRUST FUND, Appellant, v. KEY WEST CONCH HARBOR, INC., Appellee.
Judges: Before BARKDULL, NESBITT and GERSTEN, JJ.
Reporter: Southern Reporter, Second Series
Volume: 683
Pages: 144–148

Head Matter:
STATE of Florida, BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF the INTERNAL IMPROVEMENT TRUST FUND, Appellant, v. KEY WEST CONCH HARBOR, INC., Appellee.
No. 95-1275.
District Court of Appeal of Florida, Third District.
June 19, 1996.
Rehearing Denied Dec. 13, 1996.
Maureen M. Malvern, John W. Costigan and Nona R. Sehaffner, Tallahassee, for appellant.
Mattson & Tobin, James S. Mattson and Andrew M. Tobin, Key Largo, for appellee.
Before BARKDULL, NESBITT and GERSTEN, JJ.

Opinion:
BARKDULL, Judge.
Beginning in 1942, plaintiff, Key West Conch Harbor's, predecessor in title, obtained several permits from the Army Corps of Engineers for dredging and improving offshore submerged lands in Garrison Bight. This predecessor in title bulkheaded and filled a parcel for which it received a Chapter 8537, Laws of Florida 1921 ("Butler Act") deed in 1951 (referred to as Parcel B in the trial exhibits). The Butler Act permitted upland, riparian owners to obtain title by improving commerce and applied only to land that is "bulkheaded or filled in or permanently improved." Ch. 8537, Laws of Fla. (1921). This appeal focuses on whether or not Key West Conch Harbor's predecessor in title sufficiently improved Parcel A, and should therefore have obtained title to that land as well. The parties contend that the issue before this court is whether dredging alone is a permanent improvement sufficient to convey title under the Butler Act of 1921. We disagree. This case does not involve dredging only; there are moorings and a dock on Parcel A, which must also be considered.
The trial court's findings were based on both an agreed stipulation entered into by the parties and a separate finding of fact by the trial court. The parties stipulated that Key West Conch Harbor's predecessor in title had constructed a 373 foot pier on Parcel A prior to May 29,1951, the effective date of repeal of the Butler Act. Key West Conch Harbor also presented evidence that a 138 foot extension was also added to the pier prior to May 29, 1951. As the Trustees did not produce any evidence to substantiate their position that the dredging or building of the pier on Parcel A did not occur prior to the repeal of the Butler Act, the trial court held that the dredging and entire dock had been completed by May 29, 1951. The trial court concluded that Key West Conch Harbor was vested with fee simple title to these submerged lands by virtue of the improvements made by its predecessor in interest. Accordingly, the court entered judgment confirming Key West Conch Harbor's title and fee simple interest in the submerged lands lying within 500 feet of its concrete bulkhead.
A distinguishing factor in this case is that the dredged area is adjacent to the parcel of land that was filled. This is not always the case. Often, a landowner seeking to fill land must retrieve the fill from an area offshore, rather than an area adjacent to the tract of land to be filled. If this landowner were to have dredged submerged lands out in the bight, for the sole purpose of filling another parcel of land, the Butler Act would not transfer title. However, this dredging was not done for the sole purpose of filling another parcel of land. The dredging was done to the waters around an improvement, to wit: a dock. In construing the Butler Act, the definition of an "improvement" certainly includes the construction of a dock or pier. Dep't of Natural Resources v. Industrial Plastics Technology, Inc., 603 So.2d 1303 (Fla. 5th DCA 1992) (referring to "improvements" as "buildings, wharfs, piers, dry-docks and other structures affixed to tidal or submerged lands"), review denied, 617 So.2d 318 (Fla.1993). Although the Trustees concede that the landowner is entitled to the "footprint" of the pier, it seems that the pier would be, for the most part, useless without some incidental dredging.
The Jacksonville Shipyards case followed similar facts. Jacksonville Shipyards, Inc. v. Dep't of Natural Resources, 466 So.2d 389 (Fla. 1st DCA 1985). There, the dredging was incidental to the docks and piers and long list of improvements offered by the plaintiff. The First District found that the landowner was entitled to the dredged land "between these piers and docks," but the court never expressly addressed the issue of whether dredging alone is sufficient to convey title to a riparian owner under the Butler Act. Jacksonville Shipyards at 390, n. 3. Although the issue was implicated by the facts, the question was not presented to the First District. It is clear that the landowners must keep the channels and the area around the dock deep enough to be able to move vessels in and out. In fact, Jacksonville Shipyards Inc. dredged these open waters between the piers and docks eveiy six months. Although this view is not expressed in the opinion, it seems to be the underlying rationale behind it.
Accordingly, where dredging is concerned, the determination of what constitutes an "improvement" must be determined on a case-by-case basis. The surrounding land, and other improvements under the Act must be considered in addition to the dredged land. Here, the submerged land sought is located either directly beneath the dock improvement or within 50 feet of the dock and mooring areas in the direction of the channel. We hold that the title to the land that has been dredged should pass to Key West Conch Harbor. However, the title to the land is subject to a public navigational easement, as stipulated by Key West Conch Harbor during its presentation before this Court. The trial court's order confirming Key West Conch Harbor's title and fee simple interest in the submerged lands lying within 500 feet of its concrete bulkhead is affirmed, subject to a navigational easement for the benefit of the public.
Affirmed as modified.
NESBITT, J., concurs.
. A bight is a wide bay formed by a bend or curve in the shoreline. The American Heritage Dictionary 178 (2d ed. 1985).
. Parcel A measures approximately 500 feet by 221 feet, and contains 100,294 square feet, more or less, and is contiguous to and seaward of Parcel B.
. The Butler Act of 1921 was repealed by implication in 1951, when the Legislature vested title to lands under tidal waters in the Trustees of the Internal Improvement Fund. Ch. 26-776, Laws of Fla. (1951); § 253.10 Fla. Stat. (1951). The • Butler Act was later expressly repealed by the "Bulkhead Act" of 1957, which vested title to all submerged lands in the trustees of the internal improvement fund, provided for the disposition thereof, provided for the establishment of bulkhead lines, and prohibited certain actions on the part of the upland owners. Ch. 57-362, s. 9, Laws of Fla. (1957). Between 1951 and 1957, some submerged lands were still covered by the Butler Act, but that is irrelevant for the purposes of this case. However, it must be noted that the Bulkhead Act, Ch. 57-362, s. 9, Laws of Fla. (1957), provides that the "title to all lands heretofore filled or developed is herewith confirmed in the upland owners and the trustees shall on request issue a disclaimer to each such owner." This is still the law today, as codified in § 253.129, Fla. Stat. (1995).
. The structural additions included piers, docks, wharves, dry docks, railroad trestles and dredging. Jacksonville Shipyards at 390.