25 Conn. App. 446 | Conn. App. Ct. | 1991
The plaintiff appeals from the judgment denying its appeal from the decision of the defendant
The defendant agency regulates the wetlands and watercourses, as well as adjoining buffer areas of 150 feet, in the town of Mansfield.
Following a public hearing, the agency met on September 6,1989, and subsequently denied the plaintiffs application and set forth its reasons in a letter dated September 11, 1989. The plaintiff appealed from the denial of its application to the Superior Court, which affirmed the agency’s decision. In response to the plaintiff’s motion for articulation, the trial court cited the plaintiff’s failure to “fully address feasible alternatives as required by [General Statutes] § 22a-41 (b)” as the basis of its denial of the plaintiff’s appeal. The plaintiff was granted certification and now appeals to this court.
The plaintiff claims that the trial court improperly denied its appeal because (1) the reasons stated by the agency for denying the plaintiff’s application were not supported by the record and (2) the trial court’s find
The agency set forth five reasons for denying the plaintiff’s application.
“A reviewing court is required to search the record for reasons; it is not required to articulate them.” Kaeser v. Conservation Commission, 20 Conn. App. 309, 312, 567 A.2d 383 (1989). Here, the trial court as the reviewing court did articulate the reason. The trial court reviewed the record before dismissing the appeal and concluded that the plaintiff had not fully addressed the feasible alternatives as required by General Statutes § 22a-41 (b).
Although the agency did not specifically find that the construction of a single dwelling would be a feasible alternative or that prohibiting any development constituted such an alternative,
The plaintiff also argues that the agency’s reasons for denying this application are merely speculative as evidenced by the agency’s use of the words “may” and “might.” Even if that were so, the reviewing court must search the record for reasons to support the agency’s decision; see Gagnon v. Inland Wetlands & Watercourses Commission, 213 Conn. 604, 609, 569 A.2d 1094 (1990); and, upon finding such, uphold that decision regardless of the language used by the agency in stating its reasons for the denial.
Because the defendant reasonably concluded that an environmental impact could result from the plaintiff’s actions, a denial of the application was justified for this reason.
The judgment is affirmed.
In this opinion the other judges concurred.
A second defendant, Leslie Carothers, former commissioner of environmental protection, is not a party to this appeal.
Section 3.6 of the Inland Wetlands Regulations of the town of Mansfield allows the agency to regulate certain activities relating to inland wetlands and watercourses and “areas up to a distance of 150 feet from wetlands and watercourses as they may affect adjacent wetlands and watercourses, as determined by the agency.”
The letter from the Inland Wetlands Agency of the town of Mansfield stated as reasons for the denial: “[B]ecause the agency finds that feasible and prudent alternatives may exist. This was not adequately addressed by the applicant. The agency further finds, in accordance with Art. 4, that there may be a significant impact from the proposal due to its proximity to the wetlands; the nature of the land adjacent to the wetlands and the surrounding area and the amount of fill required. The wetlands may provide a habitat for red-tailed hawks. In addition, the Conservation Commission did not approve the proposal. It is further noted that the applicant has already had use of his land with an earlier subdivision.”
The trial court erroneously held that “the agency specifically found that a feasible alternative does exist, i.e., the development of the parcel by the construction of one, rather than two dwellings, or the restriction of any development at all.”
General Statutes § 22a-41 (a) provides: “In carrying out the purposes and policies of sections 22a-36 to 22a-45, inclusive, including matters relating to regulating, licensing and enforcing of the provisions thereof, the commissioner shall take into consideration all relevant facts and circumstances, including but not limited to:
“(1) The environmental impact of the proposed action;
“(2) The alternatives to the proposed action;
“(3) The relationship between short-term uses of the environment and the maintenance and enhancement of long-term productivity;
“(4) Irreversible and irretrievable commitments of resources which would be involved in the proposed activity.
“(5) The character and degree of injury to, or interference with, safety, health or the reasonable use of property which is caused or threatened; and
“(6) The suitability or unsuitability of such activity to the area for which it is proposed.”
General Statutes § 22a-41 (b) provides: “In the case of an application which received a public hearing, a permit shall not be issued unless the commissioner finds that a feasible and prudent alternative does not exist. In making his finding the commissioner shall consider the facts and circumstances set forth in subsection (a). The finding and the reasons therefor shall be stated on the record.”
“The questions in Huck [v. Inland Wetlands & Watercourses Agency, 203 Conn. 525, 547, 525 A.2d 940 (1987),] covered as here, the septic system, the nature of the lot, the soils and the proposed fill. . . . The commission members in the present case viewed the site, a factor the Supreme Court considered important. ‘Knowledge obtained through personal observations of the locus may properly be considered by the agency in arriving at reasons given for its denial.’ ” Kaeser v. Conservation Commission, 20 Conn. App. 309, 316, 567 A.2d 383 (1989).