Opinion ID: 2052130
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: validity of zoning ordinance 569

Text: Mack attacks the validity of Zoning Ordinance 569 on several grounds: 1) City failed to publish the Official Zoning Map; 2) the Official Zoning Map was not maintained in the city clerk's office; 3) the Official Zoning Map was illegible at the time of the dispute; and 4) City's actual growth between 1971 and 1986 rendered the area a general commercial area. Mack's strongest argumentthat failure to publish the Official Zoning Map is fatal to the validity of the ordinancemust give way to the rule that in the absence of a statute providing otherwise, maps or other addenda to an ordinance need not necessarily be published when the ordinance makes reference to the official map, its place of filing, and its availability for inspection by the public. See, e.g., City of Alamogordo v. McGee, 64 N.M. 253, 327 P.2d 321 (1958), (affirming a judgment upholding the validity of the ordinance and adopting the view that to invalidate the ordinance because of the omission would sacrifice substance to form.) The Minnesota Supreme Court cited McGee, supra, in Olsen v. City of Hopkins, 276 Minn. 163, 149 N.W.2d 394 (1967), where an illegible map did not comply with the requirement of publication, such publication alone did not render the ordinance ineffective. [2] While there is authority on both sides of the publishing requirement question respecting zoning maps, the underlying inquiry appears to be whether the exact wording of the statute providing for the notice of a zoning ordinance requires publication of a map. See, Annotation, Validity and Construction of Statutory Notice Requirements Prerequisite to Adoption or Amendment of Zoning Ordinance or Regulation, 96 A.L.R.2d 449 § 24(a) (1964). This inquiry distinguishes our case from the line of cases holding that publication of the zoning map is required. In Deans v. West, 189 Neb. 518, 203 N.W.2d 504 (1973), for example, R.R.S. 23-114.03 (1943) provided: An official map or maps indicating the districts and regulations shall be adopted and within fifteen days after adoption of such regulations or maps, they shall be published in book or pamphlet form or in a legal newspaper published once in and of general circulation in the county. Id. at 507-508. A statutory provision requiring that an official zoning map adopted by a county board shall be published in book or pamphlet form or in a legal newspaper is mandatory. Id. South Dakota has no statute comparable to the one cited in Deans, supra . In fact, SDCL 9-19-7, referring to codes or comprehensive regulations adopted into an ordinance and incorporated by reference, has been interpreted to permit exhibits referred to in an ordinance merely to be available for examination, rather than requiring that they be published. See Clem v. City of Yankton, 83 S.D. 386, 160 N.W.2d 125 (1968), (a bonding ordinance was held valid even though the lease and purchase contract referred to in the ordinance as exhibits were not published, but were available for examination.) In examining a Wisconsin statute on publication of ordinances, the court in City of Lake Geneva v. Smuda, 75 Wis.2d 532, 249 N.W.2d 783 (1977), determined that the minimum requirements of the statute did not include publication of a map. Thus, in the absence of express statutory authority requiring that a map be published, and not merely incorporated into an ordinance by reference, no such requirement will be imposed. We hold that where a zoning ordinance is otherwise valid, failure to separately publish an official zoning map does not render the ordinance invalid where the map is accessible to the interested public. Here, the map was displayed in the city council's meeting room. It was available for inspection. The validity of an ordinance should not turn on which room a map was displayed in the city hall. Finally, this issue may be disposed of in favor of Crottys by rejecting the remaining two grounds for invalidation. The trial court did not err in concluding that the fading of the official zoning map did not invalidate the ordinance, particularly where a reasonable facsimile was available and where the faded map was determined to be genuine. With knowledge that a genuine document existed, but was illegible, it was incumbent upon the trial court to affirm its validity. Because our conclusion is that a valid zoning ordinance is and has been in effect since implemented in the early 1970's, it is unnecessary to address Mack's contention that the actual effect of City's growth rendered the lots in question general commercial.