Title: Hackett v. Steele
Citation: 297 S.W.2d 63
Docket Number: N/A
State: Tennessee
Issuer: Tennessee Supreme Court
Date: December 7, 1956

297 S.W.2d 63 (1956) Thomas P. HACKETT, et al., Appellants, v. D.P. STEELE, et al., Appellees. Supreme Court of Tennessee. Eastern Division at Nashville. December 7, 1956. Moon, Anderson, Harris &amp; Dineen, Chattanooga, for complainants. Roberts &amp; Weill, Chattanooga, for defendants. SWEPSTON, Justice. The original bill in this case was filed by the owners of certain lots in a residential subdivision restricted to residences for the purpose of having these restrictions cancelled on the basis that there had been such a radical change in conditions as to make the enforcement of said restrictions inequitable against the owners of the lots to be hereinafter described more in detail. There was a demurrer on behalf of the defendants who are owners of other lots in the subdivision, which demurrer was sustained by the Chancellor and the complainants have appealed. The substance of the allegations of the original bill which are material to a disposition of this appeal is as follows: The bill alleges that in 1922 one of the defendants, Mark K. Wilson, purchased an unimproved tract of land consisting of 130 acres located in Hamilton County, outside the City of Chattanooga, and east of Missionary Ridge on what was then Bird's Mill Road, the tract fronting on the south line of said road about 1,700 feet and extending southwardly a distance of approximately three-fourths of a mile. Shortly after the purchase of said tract the defendant Wilson had it subdivided, streets platted and the land divided into blocks which were in turn, divided into about 500 lots. Blocks 1, 2, 3 and 4 are the ones involved in this controversy and they are the ones which front on said former Bird's Mill Road which has since become Brainerd Road. Said blocks extend southwardly about 400 feet to the north line of what is now Sunbeam Avenue which runs south of and parallel to Brainerd Road; they are bounded on the west by the present South Moore Road and on the east by the present McBrien Road except for a lot running about *64 130 feet on the Brainerd Road at the southwest corner where it intersects with McBrien Road but said lot is not included in this subdivision. Through the lapse of time from 1922 until 1954, when this bill was filed, McCallie Avenue, which at that time extended only to the city limits of Chattanooga, which were at the tunnel under Missionary Ridge, has changed from a residential neighborhood to commercial and is a part of U.S. Highway No. 11, which runs east from McCallie Avenue out Brainerd Road; this latter has been widened into a four-lane highway, is heavily traveled and now built up with various sorts of business establishments on out to where said subdivision is located and the same is now within the city limits of Chattanooga. Both the north and south sides of said Brainerd Road have been zoned "commercial" from the tunnel eastwardly to the city limits except for one small area not here concerned. On the north side of Brainerd Road opposite said Blocks 1, 2, 3 and 4 herein involved, there are a church, antique shop, sales agency, real estate agency, doctor, restaurant, several filling stations, a monument company, pharmacy, beauty shop, dressmaker, barber shop, radio shop, hardware store, dry cleaners, etc. On the south side of said road there is a filling station at the southwest corner of Brainerd Road and South Moore Road and one at the southeast corner of Brainerd and McBrien Road, although neither one has ever been a part of the subdivision property. Fronting on Brainerd Road there are in Block 1, three dwellings erected in 1920 and one dwelling in Block 2, erected in 1920, while the remainder of the lots in Blocks 1 to 4 on Brainerd Road are unimproved and have remained vacant, although surrounded by business establishments. The bill sets out the restrictions but the only ones material at the moment are as follows: The deed then provides that in case of violation of the above restrictions, "the grantees, their heirs or assigns shall be subject at the suit of the grantor, its successors or assigns, or by the public authorities to be enjoined," etc. Again: Also: The bill then avers as follows: To this bill the defendants demurred as follows: The Chancellor sustained both grounds of the demurrer and the only two assignments of error on appeal are that he was in error in both respects. We are of opinion that the case of Ridley v. Haiman, 164 Tenn. 239, 47 S.W.2d 750, fully sustains the Chancellor's action in sustaining the second ground of the demurrer. The bill shows that the deed to each and every grantee contains these restrictions to use as residential property of a specified type and value of structure and the language quoted shows that each grantor was expressly empowered to file suit to enjoin a breach of the restricted covenants. That assignment is, therefore overruled. The other assignment requires a bit more discussion. In our judgment the case of Ridley v. Haiman, supra, is not determinative. That case, 164 Tenn. on page 258, 47 S.W.2d on page 756, simply has this to say: Both parties cite and rely upon the copious note to be found in 4 A.L.R.2d, beginning on page 1111. Without attempting to quote from said annotation too much in detail, we first call attention to the fact that a difference is pointed out between the situation where an injunction is sought to enjoin the violation of the restrictive covenant on the one hand, and on the other hand where there is a proceeding in equity for the purpose of cancelling the restrictions completely. The difference is, of course, that once the restrictions are done away with all litigation in regard thereto is forever after foreclosed. With a view to determining whether or not the bill was demurrable we call attention to the statement beginning at the bottom of the page 1114, which is as follows: Again, at the bottom of page 1116, it said: Then on page 1171, under subhead "d" changes where outside restricted tract, section 22, of the annotation are cited several cases where it was held that the changes shown by the evidence occurring outside the restricted area were not sufficient to justify affirmative relief by way of cancellation of the restrictions. While we realize that these cases were not disposed of on demurrer but upon answer and proof, nevertheless they state the true principle upon which relief is to be granted or denied. The case more nearly analogous on the facts to the instant case is Bickell v. Moraio, 1933, 117 Conn. 176, 167 A. 722. In that case the Boston Post Road was gradually widened and became an arterial highway to such extent that the noise of the traffic was very intense; also all types of highway business developed on each side of the road except within the subdivision; some of the lots of the subdivision were on each side of the road, but there were other lots back away from the road which were not affected by the change in conditions. It was alleged and shown that the lots along the road if made available for business would be greatly in excess of their present value as residential property. In denying the relief by cancellation sought by the owners of several lots fronting along the Boston Post Road, 167A, on page 724, the Court said: Referring again to page 1171 of said A.L.R. annotation, there are cited: Storthz v. Middleland Hills Co., 1936, 192 Ark. 273, 90 S.W.2d 772; Humphreys v. Ibach, 1932, 110 N.J.Eq. 647, 160 A. 531, 85 A.L.R. 980; Brenizer v. Stephens, 1941, 220 N.C. 395, 17 S.E.2d 471; Booker v. Old Dominion Land Co., 1948, 188 Va. 143, 49 S.E.2d 314. These cases announce the same principle but are not nearly so analogous on the facts as the Connecticut case, supra. Counsel criticizes the above North Carolina decision by referring to a later case, Shuford v. Asheville Oil Co., 243 N.C. 636, 91 N.E.2d 903, where the evidence was held sufficient to sustain the judgment denying enforcement of the restrictions. Only a slight examination of that case will disclose an entirely different set of facts from that involved in the Connecticut case or in the instant case. Now referring again to the allegations of the bill, appellant nowhere alleges there has been such a radical change in the neighborhood that the purposes of the restrictive covenants relating to the entire subdivision have become burdensome and are not being maintained for the benefit of the owners of the lots. The bill simply avers that there has been a radical change in Brainerd Road both with respect to the amount of business buildings on it as well as the fact that it has been rezoned "commercial" on both sides of the street including these four blocks; that the lots will be worth more for commercial than they are for residential; but the only averment with reference to the remainder of the other 500 lots is that the owners of those lots will not be adversely affected by the removal of the restrictions. In our judgment, therefore, the bill fails to state a cause of action within the principles above quoted. Therefore, the demurrer was properly sustained on both grounds. Let the decree be affirmed.