SPTR, Inc. v. City of Philadelphia
2016 Pa. Commw. LEXIS 494
| Pa. Commw. Ct. | 2016Background
- Four commercial entities (including Point Breeze Fund, owner of a vacant lot at 1622-40 Point Breeze Ave.) opened a seasonal "pop-up" beer garden in May 2015 on property zoned RM-1 (residential multi-family).
- Appellees obtained PLCB liquor licenses, off-premises catering permits, Health Dept. permits, and some L&I permits, and spent about $30,000 improving the lot; they did not possess a zoning/use permit before opening.
- L&I inspected, issued warnings, denied the zoning application, and then issued a Cease Operations Order directing immediate shutdown for operating without a required zoning permit.
- Appellees sought emergency equitable relief; the trial court granted a preliminary injunction vacating the Cease Order and stayed enforcement pending resolution of the zoning appeal, finding no public-nuisance basis and that L&I lacked authority to issue the Cease Order under §14-306(l)(e)(.1).
- The City appealed the injunction, arguing the beer garden is a prohibited commercial use in RM-1 (nuisance per se) and L&I properly issued the Cease Order; the appellate court affirmed the trial court.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument (Appellees) | Defendant's Argument (City) | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether prelim. injunction was proper because L&I lacked grounds for Cease Order | L&I lacked statutory grounds: Appellees had Health/PLCB permits and no nuisance in fact, so Cease Order was improper | L&I validly ceased operations because beer garden is a prohibited commercial use in RM-1 and lacks a zoning permit | Affirmed injunction: reasonable grounds existed because L&I did not satisfy criteria for Cease Order (public health/safety or nuisance) |
| Whether operation without zoning permit automatically supports a Cease Order (i.e., permit requirement alone) | Possession of other health and alcohol permits shows public safety protected; zoning permit not needed to protect health/safety | Lack of zoning permit for a nonpermitted commercial use is sufficient to justify Cease Order | L&I met the "without permit" part but failed to show missing permit was needed to protect health/safety or that continued use created a public nuisance; thus Cease Order unjustified |
| Whether a commercial beer garden in a residential zone is a nuisance per se | A commercial use is not automatically a nuisance per se; must have inherent, unavoidable characteristics injurious to health/property | Prohibited commercial use in RM-1 is a nuisance per se; no need to show nuisance in fact | Rejected nuisance-per-se theory: mere prohibition in zoning does not make a use a nuisance per se; must show inherent, unavoidable harms or nuisance in fact |
| Whether public interest and equitable prerequisites support injunctive relief | Continued operation causes less harm (lot cleanup, charity, limited hours); other prerequisites met | Enforcement of zoning and deference to zoning process serve public interest; injunction undermines zoning enforcement | Court applied deferential review and found "apparently reasonable grounds" for injunction because L&I misapplied §14-306 criteria; injunction affirmed |
Key Cases Cited
- Summit Towne Centre, Inc. v. Shoe Show of Rocky Mount, Inc., 828 A.2d 995 (Pa. 2003) (standard of highly deferential appellate review of preliminary injunctions; examine if "apparently reasonable grounds" exist)
- SEIU Healthcare Pennsylvania v. Commonwealth, 104 A.3d 495 (Pa. 2014) (six prerequisites for preliminary injunctive relief)
- Blue Mountain Preservation Association v. Eldred, 867 A.2d 692 (Pa. Cmwlth. 2005) (commercial use in residential area does not automatically constitute nuisance per se)
- Reid v. Brodsky, 156 A.2d 334 (Pa. 1959) (operation of licensed alcohol-serving business in residential district is not necessarily nuisance per se; may be enjoined only if nuisance in fact)
- Vernon Township Volunteer Fire Dept., Inc. v. Connor, 855 A.2d 873 (Pa. 2004) (recognition that courts have not declared sale/consumption of alcohol a nuisance per se)
- Muehlieb v. City of Philadelphia, 574 A.2d 1208 (Pa. Cmwlth. 1990) (definition and scope of public nuisance)