Court Opinion

ID: 4268065
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2018-04-24 00:08:05.333383+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T14:31:13.640360
License: Public Domain

State of Vermont
                             Superior Court—Environmental Division

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                   ENTRY REGARDING MOTION
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In re Main St. Place, LLC (PC tie vote)                                  Docket No. 168-11-11 Vtec
(Appeal of claimed non-decision by Planning Commission)

Title: Motion for Enlargement of Time (Filing No. 4)
Filed: February 13, 2012
Filed By: Applicant/Cross-Appellant Main Street Place, LLC
Response: None.

  X Granted                       ___ Denied                       ___ Other

        Currently before the Court are five separate, but related, appeals concerning municipal
land use permits for development activities on the same two lots: 50 and 58 Main Street in the
Village of Derby Line, Vermont. The above Docket is an appeal by the Village of Derby Line
(“the Village”), as well as a cross-appeal by Main Street Place, LLC (“Applicant”), of a tie vote
reached by the Town of Derby Planning Commission in response to Applicant’s application for
site plan approval to raze the existing buildings on the two lots, bring the areas to grade, and
replant the areas.
        There are cross-motions for summary judgment filed in this matter that we address in a
separate Entry Order. In conjunction with the cross-motions, on February 13, 2012, Applicant
filed a motion for the enlargement of time to file a combined response to the Village’s motion
for summary judgment and reply to the Village’s opposition to Applicant’s motion for
summary judgment, both of which were filed by the Village on January 30, 2012. Applicant
requested more time in order to gather information to respond to a particular factual allegation
put forward by the Village. The Village did not oppose Applicant’s motion, and Applicant
subsequently filed its combined response and reply on March 2, 2012.
        Normally, a party has thirty days to file a response in opposition to a motion for
summary judgment, V.R.C.P. 56(b),1 and ten business days to file a reply to another party’s
opposition to any motion it files for summary judgment. V.R.C.P. 6(a), 78 (b); see V.R.E.C.P.
5(a)(2). However, the Court has discretion to grant a party more time to make such filings
when a party shows cause and files its motion for enlargement of time within the time period
allotted for the response or reply. See V.R.C.P. 6(b); V.R.E.C.P. 5(a)(2).

1 We note that an updated version of V.R.C.P. 56 took effect on January 23, 2012, subsequent to the filing

of the pending motion. We analyze the pending motion, and all of the motions for summary judgment
filed in the four related appeals concerning 50 and 58 Main Street in the Village of Derby Line, under the
current version of the rule because the rule change does not affect our analysis and at least one of these
motions for summary judgment was filed after the rule change.
Main St. Place, LLC (PC tie vote), No. 168-11-11 Vtec (EO on Mot Enlargement of Time) (06-19-12)       Pg. 2 of 2.

        Because Applicant here showed cause for the additional time it requested—to gather
information to respond to a particular factual allegation put forward by the opposing party—
and filed its motion for the enlargement of time within the time period allotted for its response
and reply, we GRANT Applicant’s unopposed motion for enlargement of time. We have
considered the combined response and reply filed by Applicant on March 2, 2012 when ruling
on the cross-motions for summary judgment filed in this matter.

_________________________________________                                          June 19, 2012
       Thomas S. Durkin, Judge                                                          Date
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Date copies sent to: ____________                                           Clerk's Initials _______
Copies sent to:
  Jon T. Anderson, Attorney for Main Street Place, LLC
  Paul S. Gilles, Attorney for Village of Derby Line