Court Opinion

ID: 9942822
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2024-02-21 21:09:00.546113+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T13:44:43.508610
License: Public Domain

Lopez v Brooklyn Union Gas Co.
               2024 NY Slip Op 30507(U)
                   February 15, 2024
             Supreme Court, Kings County
        Docket Number: Index No. 504566/2019
                Judge: Richard Velasquez
Cases posted with a "30000" identifier, i.e., 2013 NY Slip
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                       publication.
 [FILED: KINGS COUNTY CLERK 02/15/2024 04:39 P~                                                          INDEX NO. 504566/2019
  NYSCEF DOC. NO. 152                                                                              RECEIVED NYSCEF: 02/15/2024

                                                                                   At an IAS Term, Part 66 of the
                                                                                   Supreme Court of the State of New
                                                                                   York, held in and for the County of
                                                                                   Kings, at the Courthouse, at 360
                                                                                   Adams Street, Brooklyn, New York,
                                                                                   on the 15th day of FEBRUARY 2024
            PRESENT:
            HON. RICHARD VELASQUEZ
                                                        Justice.
            -----------------------------------------------------------------------------X
            NALDY LOPEZ,
                                                      Petitioner(s),                         Index No.: 504566/2019
                                                                                             Decision and Order
                                                                                             Mot. Seq. No. 5 & 6
                    -against-

            THE BROOKLYN UNION GAS COMPANY,
            individually and d/b/a NATIONAL GRID NEW YORK
            and THE HALLEN CONSTRUCTION CO. INC., and
            NEW YORK PAVING, INC.

                                                        Respondent(s).
            ----------------------------------------------------------------------X

            The following papers NYSCEF Doc #'s                    83 to 148            read on this motion:
            Papers                                                                             NYSCEF DOC NO. 's
            Notice of Motion/Order to Show Cause
            Affidavits (Affirmations) Annexed _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __                                 83-107; 110-131
            Opposing Affidavits (Affirmations) _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __                                  132-135; 137-139; 143
            Reply Affidavits_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __                                       146; 147; 148

                    After having come before the Court and the Court having heard oral argument on

            AUGUST 2, 2023, and after considering the forgoing documents above filed in connection

            with this matter the court finds as follows:

                     Defendant NEW YORK PAVING, INC. moves pursuant to CPLR 3212 for summary

            judgment in favor of defendant dismissing plaintiffs claims in their entirety; (b) dismissing

            co-defendants' cross-claims in their entirety. (MS#S) Plaintiff opposes the same.

                    Plaintiff moves for an Order pursuant to CPLR § 3212, granting plaintiff partial

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 [FILED: KINGS COUNTY CLERK 02/15/2024 04:39 P~                                              INDEX NO. 504566/2019
  NYSCEF DOC. NO. 152                                                                RECEIVED NYSCEF: 02/15/2024

           summary judgment on the issue of liability against defendants, THE BROOKLYN UNION

           GAS COMPANY, individually and D/B/A NATIONAL GRID NEW YORK and HALLEN

           CONSTRUCTION,CO., INC. (MS#6) Defendants oppose the same.

                                                          FACTS

                  This action arises from personal injuries allegedly sustained by plaintiff, NALDY

           LOPEZ while she was a pedestrian who was allegedly injured when her foot went into a

           hole located in cold patch surrounding a metal plate on a sidewalk located adjacent to the

           premises located at 3228 Mermaid Avenue in Brooklyn, New York, which allegedly

           caused her to trip and fall on April 29, 2018. Defendants, HALLEN CONSTRUCTION and

           defendant, THE NATIONAL GRID NEW YORK pursuant to a contract performed

           excavation and gas main replacements on the sidewalk at the premises. Plaintiff alleges

           said contract work caused and created the dangerous tripping hazard which caused the

           plaintiff to trip and fall. It is alleged by the plaintiff Naldy Lopez in her testimony taken on

           April 29, 2018, at 1:00 pm plaintiff fell on the sidewalk of 33rd Street between Mermaid

           Avenue and Surf Avenue near the corner closest to the intersection with Mermaid Avenue

           when her right foot went into a "round hole" the size of her hand. See Exhibit "K" at 16 -

           23; 38. It is undisputed, on the date Plaintiff fell there was a steel plate on the sidewalk in

           close proximity to where she fell.

                  New York Paving Hallen issued paving orders to New York Paving to perform

           temporary restoration to the sidewalk at West 33rd Street between Mermaid and Surf 15

           feet from the corner. New York Paving contends they performed the sidewalk restoration

           on West 33rd Street between Mermaid and Surf Avenue on June 11, 2018, two months

           after the alleged incident.

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  WILED: KINGS COUNTY CLERK 02/15/2024 04:39                            PM                 INDEX NO. 504566/2019
   NYSCEF DOC. NO. 152                                                               RECEIVED NYSCEF: 02/15/2024

                   However, Mr. Stone uncovered another paving order and this paving order was

            issued by Hallen Construction on April 2, 2018 to the paving contractor to put down

            temporary asphalt indicated (Code: CD 92 on the paying order on p. 20 of Exhibit N) at

            the location of West 33rd Street between Mermaid Avenue and Surf Avenue. On the next

            page for this paving order it is indicated that the temporary asphalt was put down at this

             location on April 3, 2018. (Exhibit M, p. 50, lines 5-9 and Exhibit N, p. 21. The paving

            Order to replace the temporary asphalt at the above-mentioned location was issued by

             Hallen Construction to paving contractor was April 3, 2018. (Exhibit M, p. 42, line 6-9,

             Exhibit N, p. 24) A continuation of that paving order is on page 25 of Exhibit N and which

            Mr. Stone states that a final restoration of the sidewalk on West 33rd Street between

             Mermaid and Surt Avenue with concrete was completed by the paving contractor on June

             10, 2018. ( Exhibit M, p. 42, lines 10- 14, and Exhibit N, pgs. 24-25

                   New York Paving contends they are entitled to summary judgment because the

             New York Paving did not owe a duty to the plaintiff to maintain or repair the subject

            sidewalk; they did not create the subject condition; they did not create the hole in the

            sidewalk; they did not place the steel plate on the sidewalk; they did not place the

            macadam around the steel plate. Defendant New York Paving also contends that any

            work they did where the alleged accident occurred was two months after the accident,

            and they were not performing any work at that location at the time of the accident. The

            Court notes defendant New York Paving does not admit to placing the any temporary

            asphalt on the sidewalk, but New York Paving contends that even if they did place the

            temporary asphalt in the sidewalk, defendants contend the temporary asphalt was not

            defective at the time the work was performed and the hole formed at a later date after the

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  WILED: KINGS COUNTY CLERK 02/15/2024 04:39 P~                                             INDEX NO. 504566/2019
  NYSCEF DOC. NO. 152                                                               RECEIVED NYSCEF: 02/15/2024

            sidewalk was excavated and the plate and macadam were placed around the plate.

                                                        ANALYSIS

                   It is well settled law that whenever any sidewalk, pavement, curb or gutter in any

           street shall be taken up, the person or persons by whom or for whose benefit the same

            is removed has a statutory obligation to restore the sidewalk. Maldonado v 527 Lincoln

           Place, LLC, 173AD3d 730, 103 NYS3d 581, 2019 N.Y. App. Div, 2019 NY Slip Op 04373.

           In Maldonado the Court found that it was undisputed that National Grid, through its

            contractors, constructed the asphalt-filled trench on which the plaintiff allegedly fell. The

           trench was part of a gas main replacement project that spanned almost the entire block

           of Lincoln Place between Classon and Franklin Avenues. This is just like the present case

           wherein it is undisputed defendants, THE BROOKLYN UNION GAS COMPANY,

           individually    and    D/8/A     NATIONAL       GRID      NEW      YORK      and    HALLEN

           CONSTRUCTION,CO., INC. through its contractors constructed the asphalt on which the

           plaintiff allegedly fell. As such plaintiffs motion for partial summary judgment is hereby

           granted. (MS#6)

                  Whether New York Paving did in fact, put down temporary blacktop in the area

           where plaintiff fell and whether it was negligent in doing so are both issues of fact in this

           action. There are two paving orders and one of the orders is for before the accident

           occurred, therefore New York Paving has not overcome their burden of showing the

           paving order from April was not them or that they did not do any work before the accident,

           or if they did do the work that said work was not defective, pursuant to the April paving

           order referenced above. As such, motion sequence number five (5) for summary

           judgment is hereby denied there are issues of fact.

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 [FILED: KINGS COUNTY CLERK 02/15/2024 04:39 P~                                        INDEX NO. 504566/2019
  NYSCEF DOC. NO. 152                                                            RECEIVED NYSCEF: 02/15/2024

                    Accordingly, defendant New York Paving's motion for summary judgment is hereby

           denied for the reasons stated above. (MS#S) Plaintiffs motion for partial summary

           judgment against defendants, THE BROOKLYN UNION GAS COMPANY, individually

           and D/B/A NATIONAL GRID NEW YORK and HALLEN CONSTRUCTION.CO., INC. is

           hereby granted for the reasons stated above. (MS#6).

           This constitutes the Decision/Order of the court.

           Dated:         Brooklyn, New York
                          FEBRUARY, 15, 2024

                                                               ijFO
                                                           Hon. Richard Velasq

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