113 Iowa 561 | Iowa | 1901
Plaintiff is the owner of a lot in defendant city, upon which stands a large, brick building that is used as a hotel. This building fronts east upon Fourth street, which runs north and south, with a slight descending grade, towai’ds the south, in front of and just north of the building. On the north of plaintiff’s property is an east and west alley 25 feet wide; immediately west is a north and south alley; and upon the south the property abuts on another east and west alley, or narrow street, 25 feet wide. The tracks of defendant railway run east and west, passing plaintiff’s property on the north. The right of way is mainly upon a strip of land owned.by the railway company, and which abuts upon the north side of the alley that bounds plaintiff’s property'on the north. One of these tracks occupies this alley east of Fourth street, and one is also laid therein west of the north and south alley which runs in the rear of plaintiff’s premises. A sketch of the premises with the immediate vicinity on the north is appended, in order to convey a clearer understanding of the genartl situation:
There are several grounds of complaint, one of which grows out of the sustaining of defendant’s demurrer to a poriton of plaintiff’s reply. As this matter will be disposed of in what we have to say generally on the case, we shall not further notice the manner in which the point was raised. With the. brief statement given as a basis, we think we can make ourselves better understood by taking up the other facts as they arise in connection with the different issues presented.
There is but one other matter connected with the Fourth street crossing, and that is the claim that the grade of the street has been raised where the tracks are laid. As we have said, Fourth street has a slight descending grade to the south at the place where the tracks cross. To lay each track on a level would make a series of steps in the street. When the crossing was constructed, it was thought best by the city authorities to lay the different tracks on a level, and have the grade descend from the south track. This was done, and, as a consequence, the south track is some six inches above the grade as it was established. While a number of witnesses say plaintiff’s property is damaged by this slight elevation, they do not say how, and it is difficult to conceive in what particular it could be hurt. We are atisffed from all the evidence that plaintiff is in a better situation than if each separate track has been laid upon the level of the street. Indeed, we are inclined to think the estimate of