Opinion ID: 1130577
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: city ordinances

Text: The Zoning Ordinance of the City and County of Denver, at 618AMENDMENT PROCEDURE, provides: 1. Declaration of Public Policy. For the purpose of establishing and maintaining sound, stable and desirable development within the territorial limits of the municipality, this ordinance, and as here used the term ordinance shall be deemed to include the official map, shall not be amended except to correct a manifest error in the ordinance or, because of changed or changing conditions in a particular area or in the municipality generally, to rezone an area or extend the boundary of an existing district, or to change the regulations and restrictions thereof, only as reasonably necessary to the promotion of the public health, safety or general welfare. Subject to the limitations of the foregoing Declaration of Public Policy, an amendment to this ordinance may be initiated by Council on its own motion or, in the manner and pursuant to the procedure hereinafter set forth, may be initiated by any person, firm or corporation filing an application therefor with the Department of Zoning Administration.       2-8. Effect of Protest to Amendment. In case of a protest to a proposed amendment to this ordinance, signed by the owners of twenty per cent or more, either of the area of the lots included in such proposed change or of those immediately adjacent in the rear thereof, extending one hundred feet therefrom, or of those directly opposite thereto, extending one hundred feet from the street frontage of such opposite lots, such amendment shall not become effective except by the favorable vote of three-fourths of all members of Council.       3-4. Limitation on Filing. No application for the change of a zoning classification shall be made by a property owner or his agent concerning any land area which land area or any portion thereof shall have been the subject of a public hearing conducted by Council within the immediately preceding twelve months period and which public hearing resulted in a rejection of the proposed zoning; provided, however, that this limitation shall not apply to those land areas or portions thereof for which a different zone district classification is proposed than that which was rejected by Council. (Sec. 1(a), Ord. 176, Series 1961) The two Charter provisions, supra, when considered together, compel a public hearing to be held on every zoning application upon which a legal protest is filed. The subject ordinance was defeated and rejected under the provisions of the Charter and appropriate ordinances of the City and County of Denver, and the Council then attempted to reconsider its action at a later date without complying with the provisions for public notice and hearing. The law is clear that a municipal legislative body may reconsider its actions and rescind an ordinance that has been previously enacted, or enact an ordinance that has previously been defeated, at any time before the rights of third parties have become vested, where there is no statutory, charter or other prohibition, as in this case. In the defendants' brief several texts on municipal corporations are cited to this effect, but reference thereto does not give us an answer to the present question, whether the City Council had the power to reconsider and reverse its previous action without giving additional notice and without conducting a second public hearing. We must, therefore, have recourse to applicable case law. We have found no Colorado case directly in point, but plaintiffs in error cite several cases from other jurisdictions. The case of Kitty v. City of Springfield, 343 Mass. 321, 178 N.E.2d 580 (1961), seems squarely in point. Suit was brought by property owners for a judgment declaring that a zoning ordinance, reconsidered and adopted after defeat, was null and void. On May 11, 1959, the ordinance failed of passage. A motion for immediate reconsideration was lost. No notice was given on that date of any intention to seek reconsideration at a later date. The Massachusetts court held:    when the May 11 meeting dissolved, the proposed ordinance was no longer pending before the common council because it had been defeated. Under usual parliamentary procedure, it would have been too late to move for reconsideration after the May 11 meeting had adjourned.          We need not consider whether valid rules could embody a custom thus permitting recurrent presentations of a zoning change after unfavorable action. Such a rule obviously would encourage the exertion of continuing pressure upon objecting members of the council to change their votes in a matter as to which the Legislature has shown its intention that there shall be careful deliberation.       In respect of zoning changes, it is obviously desirable that members of the public shall be able to ascertain the legislative status of a proposed change at all times, and to rely on unfavorable action, final in accordance with applicable rules, as a complete defeat of the proposal. (Emphasis supplied.) A similar situation was considered by the Supreme Court of New York in the case of Rabasco v. Town of Greenburgh, 285 App.Div. 895, 137 N.Y.S.2d 802 (1955), and the court held this type of procedure invalid, stating: Further, the attempted reconsideration on July 30th, of the resolution of approval of the plan which included the rezoning, that was defeated at the meeting of July 15th, was illegal. The meeting of July 15th, called after notice of public hearing, was closed after a defeat of the resolution and was not adjourned to a further date or to the call of the chair. Therefore the town board had spent its authority in that connection and under the notice of public hearing, and in no event could reconsider or take any further action without a new notice of public hearing being had. It is significant that sixty-four additional property owners filed protests subsequent to the meeting of July 15th and undoubtedly innumerable other people, whose vested rights might have been, or would have been, affected, had no opportunity to be heard at the special meeting held July 30, 1954. The Rabasco case, supra, was cited in another New York case, Bohan v. Town of Southhampton, Sup., 227 N.Y.S.2d 712 (1962), in which the court said: Zoning is a legislative power residing in the State which may be delegated to the Town Board.    When that delegated power is exercised the effect is derogatory to common law rights of property owners in that the ordinance restricts the use of their property. For that reason and because the power is merely a delegated, not inherent, one the procedure prescribed by the legislature in the enabling act is strictly construed and must be strictly followed.    Following those principles ordinances have been stricken for total failure of notice   ; for failure of new notice after public hearing was closed and the ordinance adopted at a subsequent meeting (Rabasco v. Town of Greenburgh, 285 App. Div. 895, 137 N.Y.S.2d 802, aff'd. 309 N.Y. 735, 128 N.E.2d 425);   . While none of the foregoing cases is decisive of the question posed [determining the effect of notice on certain parties], they do provide guidance. Sufficient or proper notice required by charter or ordinance, cannot be regarded as unsubstantial or innocuous. Right of notice to, and opportunity for, hearing by affected property owners is entirely too fundamental to require discussion. The intent of the charter and ordinance is crystal clear and a lack of compliance therewith dictates reversal of this case. For the above reasons the judgment of the trial court dismissing the complaint is reversed and the cause remanded for further proceedings and orders in accordance with the views herein expressed.