Case Name: OSCEOLA COUNTY, Florida, et al., Appellants, v. BEST DIVERSIFIED, INC., and Peter L. Huff, et al., Appellees
Court: Florida District Court of Appeal
Jurisdiction: Florida
Decision Date: 2006-08-11
Citations: 936 So. 2d 55
Docket Number: Nos. 5D04-216, 5D04-217
Parties: OSCEOLA COUNTY, Florida, et al., Appellants, v. BEST DIVERSIFIED, INC., and Peter L. Huff, et al., Appellees.
Judges: GRIFFIN, J., concurs.
Reporter: Southern Reporter, Second Series
Volume: 936
Pages: 55–78

Head Matter:
OSCEOLA COUNTY, Florida, et al., Appellants, v. BEST DIVERSIFIED, INC., and Peter L. Huff, et al., Appellees.
Nos. 5D04-216, 5D04-217.
District Court of Appeal of Florida, Fifth District.
Aug. 11, 2006.
Steven L. Brannock and David C. Bo-rucke, of Holland & Knight LLP, Tampa, Scott J. Johnson of Holland & Knight, LLP, Orlando, and Jo 0. Thacker, Osceola County Attorney, Kissimmee, for Appellant Osceola County, Florida.
L. Kathryn Funchess, Assistant General Counsel, Department of Environmental Protection, Tallahassee, for Appellant Department of Environmental Protection.
James L. Bennett, Chief Assistant County Attorney, Clearwater, for Amicus Curiae.
Tracy A. Marshall, Mickey R.E. Ware, Dyana L. Petro and Monterey Campbell, of Gray, Robinson, P.A., Orlando, for Ap-pellees. -

Opinion:
ON MOTION FOR REHEARING
PER CURIAM.
Appellant, Osceola County, has filed a motion for rehearing and for rehearing en banc. We grant the motion for rehearing, withdraw our prior opinion and issue the following opinion in its place.
Osceola County ["County"] and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection ["DEP"] appeal a final judgment that awarded damages to Peter Huff and Best Diversified, Inc. ["Huff'] as the owner and operator of a landfill. We conclude there is no evidence to support a determination that either the DEP or Osceola County engaged in a taking of the property, and thus reverse the judgment in its entirety.
This case involves a forty-acre landfill operated as a construction and demolition debris facility in Osceola County. The property has been used as a landfill since the 1960s. The landfill was not regulated by either the County or the DEP until the early 1990s.
In 1991, Huffs predecessor in interest obtained a five-year permit from the DEP to operate a construction and demolition debris facility on the property. A request was also submitted to the County to approve the construction and demolition facility as a conditional use of the property. The Osceola Board of County Commissioners approved the request' subject to numerous conditions. The approval was for five years and required the applicant to reapply at the end of that time for further approval.
Huff acquired the property in 1992 and the DEP's permit was later transferred to him. In 1995, residents of a nearby subdivision began complaining about odors emanating from the landfill. The cause of the problem was believed to be gypsum wallboard, one of the construction materials deposited in the landfill. When wet, gypsum wallboard emits hydrogen sulfide, a gas which smells like rotten eggs. Huff tried various methods to contain or neutralize the gas, but the complaints continued.
In March 1996, Huff applied to the DEP for a permit to continue operating at the landfill. A few months later, Huff submitted his request to the County for approval to continue the conditional use of the property as a landfill.
In November 1996, the DEP denied Huffs requested permit because of the continuing complaints from nearby residents of foul odors, investigations by the DEP which linked the odors to the landfill, and the lack of a showing that the facility would be operated in a manner to control emission of these odors. The DEP specifically found the current operation of the facility constituted a public nuisance. Huff sought administrative review of this decision and, pending the administrative process, he was able to continue operating the landfill under the permit.
In February 1997, the Osceola Board of County Commissioners denied Huffs request for a conditional use, meaning that the landfill was no longer able to operate. Odor complaints from the homeowners stopped shortly thereafter.
Huff filed another application for conditional use of the property, but that request was again denied by the Board of County Commissioners in August 1998. A year later, Huff filed this lawsuit against the County and DEP seeking damages under a theory of inverse condemnation and under the Bert J. Harris, Jr. Private Property Rights Protection Act.
In November 1999, Huff withdrew his request for administrative review of the DEP's denial of his permit to operate the landfill. He also filed a "Notice of Acceptance of Agency Action," which provides as follows:
Plaintiffs, BEST DIVERSIFIED, INC., a Florida corporation, and PETER HUFF, hereby provide formal notice that they accept the actions of Defendants, OSCEOLA COUNTY and the STATE OF FLORIDA, DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION, in connection with the Defendant's denial of permit(s) to Plaintiffs for the operation of a landfill in Osceola County. Plaintiffs waive any and all rights to further challenge the propriety of the agency actions and rules. However, Plaintiffs reserve the right to maintain this action for inverse condemnation and relief under the Bert J. Harris Act.
At the trial, both the County and DEP objected to any testimony regarding the propriety of their decisions to deny conditional use approval and the issuance of a permit. The County and DEP argued Huffs failure to seek appropriate administrative relief and his acceptance of their actions rendered this evidence improper. Their objections were overruled and Huff was able to present witnesses and evidence that the facility was ordered to shut down because of political pressure from the nearby residents, even though it was never scientifically determined the facility was the cause of the odor and Huff had spent large sums to implement an odor abatement system.
The trial court determined the County and DEP simply weighed the interests of the nearby residents against the interests of Huff and concluded the residents' interests trumped Huffs. The court also determined the County and DEP had imposed standards on Huff which made it impossible for him to continue operating the facility or to close it. Thus it was unsuitable for any other use. Such actions, according to the court, constituted an ouster of Huff from his property entitling him to relief under both his Harris Act and inverse condemnation claims.
The County and DEP appealed but their appeal was dismissed for lack of jurisdiction. Osceola County v. Best Diversified, Inc., 830 So.2d 139 (Fla. 5th DCA 2002). A jury was then impaneled to determine Huffs damages. It awarded Huff $1,415,000 on his inverse condemnation claim and $1,410,000 on his Harris Act claim. Harris elected the remedy of inverse condemnation and a final judgment was entered vesting title to the property in the County and DEP and requiring them to pay $1,415,000 to Huff.
The threshold issue on appeal is whether Huff was entitled to compensation from the County and DEP when his request for a conditional use and permit were denied based on their determination the facility was the cause of noxious odors and constituted a public nuisance. The answer is clearly no. Lucas v. South Carolina Coastal Council, 505 U.S. 1003, 112 S.Ct. 2886, 120 L.Ed.2d 798 (1992) (harmful or noxious uses of property may be proscribed by government regulation without the requirement of compensation); Keshbro, Inc. v. City of Miami, 801 So.2d 864 (Fla.2001) (regulation eliminating the value of private property effects a taking unless the purpose of the regulation is to control a public nuisance); State, Department of Environmental Protection v. Burgess, 667 So.2d 267 (Fla. 1st DCA 1995) (if landowner's proposed use of property constituted a nuisance, use was not part of landowner's property interests and compensation for denial of fill and dredge permit required for such use would not be due landowner on a theory of a constitutional taking).
In making this determination, we note that the trial court erred in reviewing the propriety of the County's action in denying Huffs application for conditional use approval and the DEP's action in denying him a permit. The Board of County Commissioners denied Huffs application for conditional use approval because of concerns about past violations at the landfill and the continuing odor problems. The DEP denied Huff a permit based on odor complaints, specifically finding that the current operation of the facility constituted a public nuisance.
If the County or the DEP acted improperly, Huff should have sought appropriate administrative and judicial review of those actions. Huff did not do so. He dismissed his administrative appeal of the DEP's decision to deny him a permit and did not seek administrative or judicial review of the County's decision to deny his application for conditional use approval. Furthermore, Huff filed a notice specifically accepting the actions of the County and DEP and waiving any right to further challenge those actions. In these circumstances, Huff may no longer challenge the propriety of the actions of the County and DEP in denying the conditional use approval and a permit.
The remaining question is whether the DEP and/or the County effected a compensable taking by refusing to allow Huff to close the landfill in accordance with DEP requirements in order to put the property to other non-landfill uses. There is simply no evidence that the County kept Huff from closing the landfill in accordance with law or engaged in any conduct amounting to a taking. Inverse condem nation is a cause of action by a property owner to recover the value of property that has been de facto taken by an agency having the power of eminent domain where no formal exercise of that power has been undertaken. Rubano v. Department of Transportation, 656 So.2d 1264 (Fla.1995); Sarasota Welfare Home, Inc. v. City of Sarasota, 666 So.2d 171 (Fla. 2d DCA 1995). A "taking" occurs when an owner is denied substantially all economically beneficial or productive use of the land. Huffs position on appeal was that the County inversely condemned the landfill by "preventing him from opening-to-close," but as a matter of law Huff had no right to open the landfill to close it. He only had the duty to close — to place a final cover of a twenty-four-inch thick soil layer, the upper six inches of which had to be capable of supporting vegetation, graded and compacted as necessary to eliminate ponding, promote drainage and minimize erosion. See Fla. Admin. Code R. 62-701.730(9).
The plaintiffs theory was that the County kept telling Huff that his proposals for the landfill after the permit and conditional use expired had to be part of a closure plan approved by DEP, but because the movement and placement of clean fill is not regulated by DEP, if Huff had asked DEP for its approval to deposit clean fill, he wouldn't have been able to get it. He asserted that by requiring this impossible task, the County prevented him from placing the required dirt on the landfill and restoring his property to any beneficial use.
There is no competent evidence in the record to support this entirely bogus claim. It is true that DEP doesn't regulate the placement of clean fill because, as the DEP witness explained, there is too much of it on the move every day in Florida and there is no real reason to do so. However, DEP does have the responsibility to regulate closure of construction and demolition debris landfills. See § 403.704(15), Fla. Stat. (1997); Fla. Admin. Code R. 62-701.730(1).
Here is how the closure procedure was described by Huffs own engineer:
Q Now, with respect to closure as of February of '97, what would have had to have happened for proper closure? First define for the Court what closure is because we're talking about closing the facility to not let it operate, but then we have closure. Can you distinguish between those for the Court?
A Sure. And I'll deal with closure because that's what I understand your question was framed around.
Q Yes, sir.
A In the normal course of conducting business activities, when a landfill reaches the final operational levels, in this case the final height that it was designed and intended to achieve, at that point there would be in accordance with the DEP regulations a notification to the DEP that that facility would embark on the normal standard closure.
And in accordance with the regulations in effect as of February 1997, that would include placing two foot of dirt over all portions of that said landfill that had not yet [sic] through the sequential closure — through the normal business activities prior to that date. You would then place the two foot of dirt, achieve the proper grading and slopes on that landfill.
You would then seed and mulch that landfill to ensure that you got proper vegetative cover. You would verify that all activities had been terminated during that six-month period, that all necessary site cleanups had been undertaken, and that when you reached that final point where you felt closure was achieved, you would notify the DEP for them to come to verify that they concurred with closure being completed.
Q In your experience, the closure mechanic does not involve county regulations. These are DEP regulations?
A I have been specifically referring to DEP regulations to date, although the County has followed the DEP regulations as stipulated.
Q Now, you mentioned at the front end of your answer when you start the closure process, you used the word "notification." What is that? You said there was some notification.
A Under a general permit and even under the standard landfill permit, you would allow the DEP to know that you have reached the point of final operational level for the landfill. You would let them know that you were embarking on beginning the commencement of closure to ensure that they were aware and could verify that what you were about to close was consistent with what you said you intended to accomplish when you were given either your standard landfill permit or in this case a general permit.
Q And is this notification typically in writing, or you just call somebody on the phone and tell them you're going to do it? How does that happen?
A Not having the regulations in front of me, I don't recall it being in writing, but historically any notification would be in writing. It would usually be sent by certified mail return receipt requested.
Q And in February of '97, were you asked to notify DEP on behalf of Mr. Huff of an intent to close this facility?
A Since there was no intent to close, no sir, I was not.
Q And do you know whether Mr. Huff put the DEP on notice of any intent to close after the Board of County Commission meeting in February of '97?
A I do not have direct knowledge of all of Mr. Huffs activities, so it would be unfair for me to try to comment.
Q Do you have any knowledge or can you ballpark for us in February — following the February '97 Board of County Commission meeting if there was going to be this closure pursuant to notification what the cost would have been at that time?
A Leading up until February of 1997 with the anticipation that that facility would have continued to operate to reach the point where the final height of the cell reached the design level, we had estimated the final closure cost, since sequential closure was occurring simultaneously with operation, would have been approximately 300,000 dollars.

Q The fact that Mr. Huff told you to cease your efforts due to the result of the Board of County Commissioners in February of '97, do you believe in March of 1997, April, May, June, July and August of '97 that Mr. Huff had the financial ability to pay that much for closing costs without operating the facility to earn revenue to do so?
A I guess I can give you a two comment response to that. A, he told me he did not; B, I was not aware of Mr. Huffs financial ability.
Q Did he tell you that he did not have the ability in that time period I'm talking about to close it without operating it to close?
A Yes.
The only issue as to this claim is whether the county wrongfully refused to let Huff do what he was entitled to do (i.e. close in accordance with section 62-701-730(9)) in order to restore the property to other uses after the landfill was ordered to cease operations on February 17, 1997. His right to operate a landfill in any manner had indisputably expired.
Osceola County made it clear to Huff, after his conditional use permit under Osceola County's zoning had expired, that the landfill had to be closed. Closure under the DEP regulations at a minimum required two feet of dirt cover. What the record shows clearly is that Huff made many proposals for the property after his zoning expired, but none involved showing up with two feet of dirt to close it; nor did Huff have the resources to close the landfill by placing the dirt cover; nor did he ever notify DEP of his intent to close in accordance with the regulations. His theory is that he is relieved of any of these burdens because the County's demand that DEP approve his closure plans was impossible because "DEP doesn't regulate clean fill."
Both sides agree that the key evidence on this issue of the County's refusal to let Huff close his landfill is found in the exchange of correspondence over an approximately one-year period between Huffs counsel and the County. This exchange of correspondence demonstrates without dispute that Huff had many different plans but he never attempted simply to close the landfill by following the closure procedure. What Huff wanted to do was to continue to operate the landfill and generate revenue over the remaining expected five-year life of the landfill, some of which would pay for the eventual fill, grading and dressing of the slopes five years hence when the landfill would close. According to the estimates, the continued operation of the landfill for the second five-year "expected life" would generate in excess of $10 million in revenues and the cost to apply a proper clean fill cover and maintenance subsequent to closure would be somewhere in the $300,000 to $450,000 range. The County's consistent response to these various schemes proposed by Huff was that he would have to get DEP to agree. If DEP agreed to his plan, the County would also.
The "closure" correspondence began in July 1997, a few months after the County disallowed continued operation of the landfill. Huffs counsel sent the Osceola County manager a "proposed business plan for closure." This basically consisted of a proposal for continued operation of the landfill for five more years as a construction and demolition debris facility, with assurances of monitoring hydrogen sulfide gas and odor management and promises of funds available at the end of the five years to fund closure according to a closure plan submitted to DEP ninety days before the last day waste is accepted.
Shortly thereafter, on August 8, Huffs counsel informed the Osceola County manager that Huff was going to "bring into the landfill material and equipment that will be used in grading and sloping the site in order to correct any drainage problems that may have arisen since the landfill ceased operation." This "material" turned out to be construction and demolition debris. When the County objected that this was exactly the activity that he was no longer allowed to undertake, Huff responded that he was not "operating a landfill" by placing this construction and demolition debris on the landfill because this was not construction and demolition debris that was being dumped by a member of the public for a fee. Rather, he had contracted with "Gemini Waste Services, Inc." to perform compaction, grading and sloping at the site through the use of additional construction and demolition material. In essence, he contended that he had the right to dump whatever he wanted to onto the landfill so long as he was not "operating" a landfill. He contended that he had entered into a legitimate contract with Gemini to buy suitable construction and demolition material and he threatened a lawsuit for tortious interference with his contractual relationship with Gemini if the County did not allow him to proceed. As it turns out, Gemini was a corporation owned by Huffs wife. The County refused to allow this.
Next, the Osceola County manager was informed by letter dated December 31, 1997, that Huff "hope[d] to bring dirt fill material and crushed concrete onto the facility within the next week." Notably, this letter does not refer in any way to the use of this material for closure of the landfill or explain how crushed concrete might meet the closure requirement of a two-foot dirt cover. The response of the County was to inform Huffs counsel that in light of the expiration of the conditional use, Huff was required to close the landfill in accordance with applicable DEP regulations and, therefore, the only activities Huff would be allowed to conduct were those connected with closure of the facility. The letter continues:
If the activities your client seeks to conduct have been approved by the Department of Environmental Protection as part of the statutory closure plan requirements, please provide me with evidence of the Department's approval and I will promptly review same with staff. Assuming there are no questions, I am sure your client will be given authorization to proceed. However, if your client's proposal is not in connection with an approved closure plan, the activities your client intends to undertake are prohibited.
Shortly thereafter, Huff filed a notice of claim under the Harris Act and his counsel wrote to the Osceola County attorney a letter dated February 26, 1998, that included the following:
I think we can all agree that, rhetoric aside, we have an environmental problem on our hands that is in dire need of a solution. From our perspective, the critical issue is how to close the landfill in accordance with the applicable rules and regulations of the Department and continue to contain the odor control/maintenance system at the facility. In its simplest terms, the solution is purely an economic one: where do we find the money to accomplish what we all agree needs to be done? Since neither the State nor the County has expressed any interest in either purchasing the site or funding closure, the only alternative would appear to be to allow the landfill to generate sufficient funds to pay for the closure. How this will be allowed to occur is the problem we must address.
Transmitted with this letter for re-consideration by the County was the "open to close" business plan that had been transmitted the summer before.
On July 15, 1998, Huffs counsel again wrote to the county attorney the following:
Closure procedures have not been initiated for two reasons. First and foremost, it has been Mr. Huffs hope that the P & D Landfill would ultimately reopen. Second, the "final load" of material that would trigger the time frame for closure has not yet occurred. The Department of Environmental Protection ("Department") is aware of the sta tus of the landfill and has made no demand that Mr. Huff initiate closure.
The rules governing the operation of landfills promulgated by the Department of Environmental Regulation are rather strict on this issue and require that the landfill be properly closed for obvious health reasons. There are not many available options to achieve this purpose. Since neither the State nor Osceola County have expressed any interest in either purchasing this site or funding its closure, the only alternative is to allow Mr. Huff, either directly or through an operating or management agreement, to operate the facility in order to generate the funds necessary to close the landfill.

. The landfill has been in the same location for over twenty years. It has a limited life expectancy that can, with the proper guidelines, be used to generate the income necessary to fund proper closure.
The following week counsel sent a letter to a member of the Board of County Commissioners of Osceola County as follows:
Peter Huff has applied for a conditional use permit from Osceola County to reopen the P & D Landfill located on Old Lake Wilson Road in Kissimmee.... The purpose of the current application is to allow the facility to reopen in order to generate the monies necessary to properly close the facility in accordance with the requirements with the Department of Environmental Protection.... The problem facing Mr. Huff, as well as the State and Osceola County, is how to properly close the facility. Mr. Huff is aware that, as both the owner of the landfill and the property upon which it is located, he is ultimately responsible for properly closing the facility. Unfortunately, it takes money to do this properly and without a source of income to provide the necessary funds, Mr. Huff is unable to meet the closure requirements. Opening the facility to generate revenue to fund an escrow account dedicated to closing the landfill would appear to be the most reasonable option available to all concerned in order to insure closure of the facility in a timely manner.
The final correspondence contains the following:
[T]he purpose of the application was to reopen the landfill for the sole purpose of generating the funds necessary to properly close the facility pursuant to the requirements of the Department of Environmental Protection. The purpose of the application was not, as suggested by Ms. Payne, to meet 'my client's desire to continue operating the landfill'. I can assure that Mr. Huff has only one desire, and that is to open the landfill in order to insure its proper closure. The requirement to properly close the facility remains in spite of the County Commission's action, and must, therefore, still be addressed.... In order to bring this matter to closure, Mr. Huff offers Osceola County the following options:
1. Purchase the property for $6.75 million;
2. Lease the facility from Mr. Huff for at a rate of [sic] $450,000 per year and assume the responsibility for closing the landfill. The lease would be for the length of time the County required to achieve this purpose; or
3. Issue a conditional use permit for the specific purpose of generating the funds necessary to properly close the facility.
Finally, the letter says this:
As you know, neither the State of Florida nor Osceola County has any statutes, ordinances or rules that would prohibit Mr. Huff from accepting clean fill or inert material on the property. Nevertheless, last September, when Mr. Huff attempted to bring such material to the site in order to grade and slope the property as part of the closure process, the Osceola Code Enforcement staff issued citations to both Mr. Huff and the truck drivers. Mr. Huff was advised by at least one Code Enforcement staff that clean fill could be disposed of at the facility as long as Mr. Huff did not charge for the disposal. We have yet to receive a response from the County to our repeated inquiries as to the underlying authority for the County's action or why clean material could be disposed of without charge, but not accepted if there was any exchange of money. The conditional use permit that expired on February 17, 1997, specifically requires that the landfill be closed in accordance with the applicable rules of the Department of Environmental Protection. The use of clean fill is consistent with these rules, and is an allowed medium to achieve the proper sloping and grading necessary for closure. Mr. Huff intends to commence filling his property with this material on or about September 1, 1998, and would request the County's support in these efforts, or the authority under which the County would prohibit such activity.
The County responded by reiterating what it had said in January 1998 — that if the activities Huff sought to conduct were approved by DEP as part of a statutory closure plan, the County will give authorization to proceed, but if Huff sought to undertake activities that were not in connection with an approved closure plan, such activities would be prohibited. No request for approval by DEP was ever made.
Clearly, after the expiration of his conditional use permit and the denial of his subsequent application to renew his conditional use permit in February 1997, Huff no longer had the right under the zoning laws of Osceola County to operate a landfill. Moreover, having ceased to operate a landfill under DEP regulations, he had an affirmative duty to close the landfill in accordance with DEP's regulations. Huff repeatedly offered to open the landfill in order to generate funds to "eventually" close it; he sought to dump more construction and demolition debris on the landfill to "improve its drainage." He informed the County on one occasion that he wanted to bring in crushed concrete. His final proposal appears to have been to operate as a "clean fill" landfill, challenging the County to explain why, if he could bring dirt on to close the landfill, he couldn't open it to generate revenue by accepting clean fill.
The dissent's contention that the majority has misconstrued the applicable closure rules is useful for several reasons. First and foremost, it demonstrates that what controls the correct outcome of this case is a question of law, not one of "conflicting evidence."
There can be no doubt about Huffs legal position, which appears repeatedly in Huffs answer brief on appeal: "From February 1997, Huff sought one thing—'open to dose'." [emphasis in original]. According to Huffs counsel, "open" in this context meant "to operate the landfill." Huffs February 1998 statement of claim against the County summarizes his position in his own words:
Over the past year I have repeatedly tried to bring in material to properly slope and grade the Landfill as required by the Department's general permit, and have been frustrated by the County's position that any activity at the facility whereby I was able to make money was a commercial venture, and thereby prohibited. The conditional use permit issued by the County specifically required that the facility be closed in accordance with the Department's rules and regulations. The Department did not object to the use of either C & D material or clean fill to meet the closure requirements, yet the County issued citations when I attempted to bring in material specifically to meet the Department's closure requirements. Staff from the Code Enforcement Board told me that I could bring in as much "dirt" as I wanted, but no C & D material. The County has no rules governing the closure of landfills, yet required me to meet their standards which appear to be made up to fit the situation.
[emphasis added].
There is also no dispute about what the County did: it told Huff that if he wanted to "open to close" the landfill, he had to get DEP approval. This they had the absolute legal right to do.
The dissent apparently has concluded that DEP Rule 62-701.730(9)(b) allowed Huff to open the landfill to dump more material in order to "properly grade" the landfill. But the rule does no such thing. The rule says:
(b) Final cover and seeding or planting of vegetative cover shall be placed on each disposal unit within 180 days after it has reached its final grade. Final cover shall consist of a 24-inch-thick soil layer, the upper six inches of which shall be capable of supporting vegetation, and shall be graded and compacted as necessary to eliminate ponding, promote drainage, and minimize erosion. The side slopes of all above-grade disposal units shall be no greater than three feet horizontal to one foot vertical rise.
A requirement in the rule that the closed landfill have a maximum three-to-one slope in no way authorizes additional material to be added after closure in order for the required grade to be met. We reject the suggestion that a landfill that has lost its zoning and permit to operate may nevertheless continue to operate as a landfill under the guise of "grading." If Huff wanted to reach the required grades by adding material, it was his obligation to do so before his permit to dump expired. Even Dean Cannon, Huffs attorney, conceded at trial that once the County had denied extension of the conditional use permit, it would have been a violation for Huff to bring in material.
Huffs failure to have the landfill graded for closure was not the County's problem. He had at least two obvious options: he could either bring the landfill to the proper grade without adding to the landfill, or he could secure the County's permission to add to the landfill in order to bring it to grade. The County's response that the County would likely agree if he could secure DEP's approval was entirely proper.
It is also ironic that both the dissent and Huff in his claim letter argue that DEP did not object to the use of either C & D material or clean fill to meet the closure requirements. The dissent's observation that DEP "did not have a problem with [Huff] using clean fill to slope, grade and prepare the landfill for closing," implicitly acknowledges the rightness of the Coun ty's position that DEP approval of whatever happened at that landfill was important. At trial, Huffs whole focus of liability was the claim that the County had placed him in an impossible "catch 22" situation by demanding consent from DEP that DEP could not give. Apart from the falsity of that premise, a claim such as this cannot be made unless the claimant can at least show that DEP's permission was sought and denied. Because, as a matter of law, the County did not prevent Huff from closing the landfill, there was no inverse condemnation.
REVERSED and REMANDED.
GRIFFIN, J., concurs.
SHARP, W., Senior Judge, concurs and concurs specially, with opinion.
PLEUS, C.J., dissents, with opinion.
. A construction and demolition debris facility may accept material, such as steel, glass, brick, concrete, asphalt, pipe, gypsum wallboard and lumber, from the construction or destruction of a structure.
. A conditional use is a use identified in the zoning regulations which may be approved subject to filing the appropriate applications and site plans.
. The Bert Harris Act, found in section 70.001, Florida Statutes (1997), creates a separate and distinct cause of action for property owners where governmental regulation has "inordinately burdened" the property, but does not amount to a "taking" under the Florida or federal constitutions.
. Key Haven Assoc. Enters., Inc. v. Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund, 427 So.2d 153 (Fla.1982); Department of Environmental Protection v. Youel, 787 So.2d 923 (Fla. 5th DCA 2001); Vatalaro v. Department of Environmental Regulation, 601 So.2d 1223, 1227 n. 4 (Fla. 5th DCA), review denied, 613 So.2d 3 (Fla.1992).
. In light of the complete reversal of the inverse condemnation judgment, we have also considered the trial court's alternative finding of liability under the "Bert Harris Act," § 70.001 et seq., Fla. Stat. (1998). However, Huff clearly failed to submit the "bona-fide, valid appraisal supporting the claim" required by the Act. Failure to satisfy this requirement cannot be cured by filing an appraisal in the litigation. Nor does the Act apply to the impact on real property occasioned by governmental abatement, prohibition, prevention or remediation of a public nuisance at common law or a noxious use of private property, which, as explained above, the actions complained of indisputably were.
. Florida's constitution states that no private property shall be taken except for a public purpose and with full compensation paid to each owner. Art. X, § 6a, Fla. Const.
. Notably, for the first several months after the conditional use to operate the landfill had expired, while Huff was attempting to place construction and demolition debris that he had "purchased" from his wife's company, Gemini, Huff took the position that under the DEP permit, construction and demolition debris was the only material DEP would allow him to place on the landfill.