Opinion ID: 2266295
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Measurement of the Setback

Text: Having determined that the ordinance's setback requirement applies to the deck, we must next determine in what manner the setback is to be measured. Section 11(M)(1) of the Shoreland Zoning ordinance states: All principal structures in the Resource Protection and Limited Residential-Recreational Districts shall be set back at least 75 feet from the normal high water mark of any pond or river as defined. Union, Me., Shoreland Zoning Ordinance § 11(M)(1) (June 30, 1974). While other provisions of the zoning ordinance specify the method by which measurements are to be made, some requiring over-the-land measurement and others horizontal measurement, the setback provision at issue here is silent as to how it should be measured. [3] Compare Union, Me., Shoreland Zoning Ordinance § 11(N)(2) (June 30, 1974) (measuring distance in feet along surface of the ground) with Union, Me., Shoreland Zoning Ordinance § 11(J)(2) (June 30, 1974) (stating that setback for sewage system shall be no less than 100 horizontal feet). Strong contends that the ordinance's varied treatment of measurement methodology creates an ambiguity that requires us to strictly construe the ambiguity in favor of him by adopting the over-the-ground method of measurement he champions. We disagree. Interpretation of provisions in a zoning ordinance is a question of law. Mayberry v. Town of Old Orchard Beach, 599 A.2d 1153, 1154 (Me.1991). There are several principles of statutory construction that apply to the interpretation at issue here. The contested language must be construed reasonably and with regard to both the ordinance's specific object and its general structure. Ray v. Town of Camden, 533 A.2d 912, 914 (Me.1987). Each undefined term is given its common and generally accepted meaning unless the context of the statute clearly indicates otherwise. George D. Ballard, Builder, Inc. v. City of Westbrook, 502 A.2d 476, 480 (Me.1985). Additionally, when the municipality seeks to impose penalties for violation of the zoning ordinance, or the contested provision limits the use of real estate, the provision will be strictly construed. Town of Hartford v. Bryant, 645 A.2d 18, 19 (Me. 1994) (stating that when town seeks to impose fines for zoning violation ordinance will be strictly construed); LaPointe v. City of Saco, 419 A.2d 1013, 1015 (Me.1980) (stating that when provisions to be construed limit use of land they will be strictly construed). Focusing on this last precept of statutory construction, Strong asks us to ignore the other applicable rules of statutory interpretation. Strict construction, however, cannot be used to defeat the clear intent of the statute nor to construe the statute in an unreasonable manner. See State v. Millett, 392 A.2d 521, 525 (Me.1978) (stating that rule of strict construction is subordinate to rule that judicial interpretation must be reasonable and sensible with a view to effectuating the legislative design and true intent of the legislature); Moyer v. Board of Zoning Appeals, 233 A.2d 311, 316 (Me.1967) (statutes must be strictly construed but nevertheless should be read according to their natural and most obvious import); Violette v. Macomber, 125 Me. 432, 434, 134 A. 561, 562 (1926) (The rule of strict construction . . . is subordinate to the rule of reasonable, sensible construction, having in view effectuation of the legislative purpose, and is not to be so unreasonably applied as to defeat the true intent and meaning of the enactment.). See also SUTHERLAND STAT. CONST. § 58.01 (5th ed. 1992) (Strict construction does not mean strained construction which is against the legislature's intent.). Contrary to the Strongs' contention, the principle of strict construction does not require that we adopt a construction of the ordinance that is most favorable to the property owner if adoption of such a construction is inconsistent with the common and general usage of terms contained in the ordinance or incongruent with the ordinance's apparent purposes. The general objectives of the Union shoreland zoning ordinance, the specific objectives of shoreland setbacks, and the customary methods of surveying boundaries, all counsel against the measurement interpretation advanced by Strong and in favor of the use of the horizontal methodology. The town's shoreland zoning ordinance lists among its purposes: to further the maintenance of safe and healthful conditions; prevent and control water pollution; protect spawning grounds, fish, aquatic life, bird and other wildlife habitat; control building sites, placement of structures and land uses; and conserve shore cover, visual as well as actual points of access to inland and natural beauty. Union, Me., Shoreland Zoning Ordinance § 1 (June 30, 1974). Shoreland setbacks further these objectives by keeping developmental activities from encroaching upon the shore and by limiting introduction of artificial structures into the natural and fragile setting of the shoreline. Requiring the shoreland setback to be measured along the horizontal plane results in structures being placed further back from the high water mark and thereby best serves the protective purpose of the shoreland setback. Common property surveying techniques also support the court's determination that the setback should be measured horizontally. When referring to distance, it is horizontal distance relative to some actually defined unit. CURTIS M. BROWN & WINFIELD H. ELDRIGE, EVIDENCE AND PROCEDURES FOR BOUNDARY LOCATION 192 (1962) (emphasis in original). See also WALTER G. ROUBILLARD ET AL., BROWN'S BOUNDARY CONTROL AND LEGAL PRINCIPLES 45 (1995) (Distances cited in modern descriptions are presumed to be along a horizontal straight line.). Thus, the court did not err in construing the Union zoning ordinance as requiring that the distance between the high water mark and the edge of the deck be measured horizontally.