Court Opinion

ID: 9705005
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-26 00:54:40.029586+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:22:07.387593
License: Public Domain

Dissenting Opinion by
Judge Doyle:
I respectfully dissent.
The majority relies upon our decision in Safford v. Board of Commissioners, Annville Township, 35 Pa. Commonwealth Ct. 631, 387 A.2d 177 (1978) to hold that Section 509 of the MPC imposes upon a municipality a strict statutory duty to enforce the requirements of the municipality’s subdivision and land development ordinances. Safford, however, is wholly inapposite, as that case deals with a township’s responsibility for completion of public improvements where the township has failed to obtain performance guarantees from the developer as required by township ordinance. As was stated in that case, and as is noted by the majority here, “Section 511 of the MPC . . . gave and still gives the municipality the power to enforce the developer’s obligation to complete improvements required by its regulation.” Id. at 637, 387 A.2d at 180. The duty imposed upon a municipality by Sections 509 and 511 is that of ensuring that developers complete subdivision improvements in accordance with the municipality’s ordinances. The Township here has met its duty under Sections 509 and 511, in a manner specifically allowed by Sections 509 and 511, by having Winterloch post an improvement bond. The majority seeks to impose a duty upon the Township that would exceed any imposed by Sections 509 and 511, as the Farnells seek not the *551completion of improvements, but rather, damages for injury to their property.
Furthermore, the Farnells have failed to state a cause of action under the Restatement (Second) of Torts, §324A (1965). In order to state a common-law cause of action grounded upon negligence, the following elements must generally be shown:
1. A duty, or obligation, recognized by the law, requiring the person to conform to a certain standard of conduct, for the protection of others against unreasonable risks.
2. A failure on the persons part to conform to the standard required: a breach of duty. .
3. A reasonably close causal connection between the conduct and the resulting injury.
4. Actual loss or damage resulting to the interest of another.
W. Prosser and W. P. Keeton, Law of Torts §30 (5th ed. 1984) (emphasis added); Macina v. McAdams, 280 Pa. Superior Ct. 115, 421 A.2d 432 (1980). The Township here owes no duty to the Farnells for three reasons. First, the scope of any duty imposed by Sections 509 and 511 of the MPC was not as great as that necessary to impose liability. under Section 324A of the Restatement (Second) of Torts and, in any event, was satisfied by the Township when it had Winterloch post a performance bond. Second, even assuming arguendo that Sections 509 and 511 did impose upon the Township a duty to inspect Wintedochs work, such duty only arose when the developer submitted his subdivision plat for final approval. Here, suit was commenced prior to Winterlochs submission of the plat and, consequently, the Township owed no duty to the Farnells at that time. Last, and most important, assuming that Sections 509 and 511 did impose upon the Township a duty to inspect continuously arid monitor Winterlochs *552development, there still would be no liability. Any inspection rendered pursuant to these two sections would be a service rendered on behalf of the government for the benefit of the government and the public at large, and not for the benefit of Winterloch and/or the Farnells. Therefore, the Township owed no duty to the Farnells to inspect. Isaacson v. Mobil Propane Corp., 315 Pa. Superior Ct. 42, 461 A.2d 625 (1983); see also McCreary v. United States, 488 F. Supp. 538 (W.D. Pa. 1980) (applying Pennsylvania law).
I would remand the case to the trial court with direction to enter judgment in favor of the Township.
Judge Palladino joins in this dissent.