WILLIAMSON COUNTY REGIONAL PLANNING COMMISSION ET AL. v. HAMILTON BANK OF JOHNSON CITY
No. 84-4
Supreme Court of the United States
Argued February 19, 1985—Decided June 28, 1985
473 U.S. 172
Robert L. Estes argued the cause for petitioners. With him on the brief was M. Milton Sweeney.
Edwin S. Kneedler argued the cause for the United States as amicus curiae urging reversal. With him on the brief were Solicitor General Lee, Assistant Attorney General Habicht, Deputy Solicitor General Claiborne, and David C. Shilton.
G. T. Nebel argued the cause for respondent. With him on the brief was Gus Bauman.*
*Briefs of amici curiae urging reversal were filed for the State of California ex rel. John K. Van de Kamp, Attorney General of California, et al. by Mr. Van de Kamp, pro se, N. Gregory Taylor and Theodora Berger, Assistant Attorneys General of California, Richard C. Jacobs, Craig C. Thompson, Richard M. Frank, Norman C. Gorsuch, Attorney General of Alaska, Jim Smith, Attorney General of Florida, Thomas J. Miller, Attorney General of Iowa, Francis X. Bellotti, Attorney General of Massachusetts, Hubert H. Humphrey III, Attorney General of Minnesota, Paul L. Douglas, Attorney General of Nebraska, Brian McKay, Attorney General of Nevada, George V. Postrozny, Deputy Attorney Genеral, Gregory H. Smith, Attorney General of New Hampshire, T. Travis Medlock, Attorney General of South Carolina, Jim Mattox, Attorney General of Texas, Rufus L. Edmisten, Attorney General of North Carolina, Michael Turpen, Attorney General of Oklahoma, Robert L. McDonald, First Assistant Attorney General, Mark V. Meierhenry, Attorney General of South Dakota, David L. Wilkinson, Attorney General of Utah, Dallis W. Jensen, Solicitor General, John J. Easton, Attorney General of Vermont, Bronson C. La Follette, Attorney General of Wisconsin, Archie G. McClintock, Attorney General of Wyoming, Aviata F. Fa‘Alevao, Attorney General of American Samoa; for the National Association of Counties et al. by Lawrence R. Velvel and Joyce Holmes Benjamin; for the City of New
Briefs of amici curiae urging affirmance were filed for the American College of Real Estate Lawyers by Edward I. Cutler, Eugene J. Morris, and John P. Trevaskis, Jr.; for the California Building Industry Association by Gideon Kanner; for the National Apartment Association by Jon D. Smock and Wilbur H. Haines III; and for the Pacific Legal Foundation by Ronald A. Zumbrun and Robert K. Best.
Morris A. Thurston, Robert K. Break, and John L. Fellows III filed a brief for Irvine Co. as amicus curiae.
JUSTICE BLACKMUN delivered the opinion of the Court.
Respondent, the owner of a tract of land it was developing as a residential subdivision, sued petitioners, the Williamson County (Tennessee) Regional Planning Commission and its members and staff, in United States District Court, alleging that petitioners’ application of various zoning laws and regulations to respondent‘s property amounted to a “taking” of that property. At trial, the jury agreed and awarded respondent $350,000 as just compensation for the “taking.” Although the jury‘s verdict was rejected by the District Court, which granted a judgment notwithstanding the verdict to petitioners, the verdict was reinstated on appeal. Petitioners and their amici urge this Court to overturn the jury‘s award on the ground that a temporary regulatory interference with an investor‘s profit expectation does not constitute a “taking” within the meaning of the Just Compensation Clause of the Fifth Amendment,1 or, alternatively, on the ground that even if such interference does constitute a taking, the Just Compensation Clause does not require money damages as recompense. Before we reach those con-
I
A
Under Tennessee law, responsibility for land-use planning is divided between the legislative body of eaсh of the State‘s counties and regional and municipal “planning commissions.” The county legislative body is responsible for zoning ordinances to regulate the uses to which particular land and buildings may be put, and to control the density of population and the location and dimensions of buildings.
Pursuant to
“both the size and the width of individual residential lots in . . . [a] development may be reduced, provided . . . that the overall density of the entire tract remains constant—provided, that is, that an area equivalent to the total of the areas thus ‘saved’ from each individual lot is pooled and retained as common open space.” 2 N. Williams, American Land Planning Law § 47.01, pp. 212-213 (1974).
Cluster zoning thus allows housing units to be grouped, or “clustered” together, rather than being evenly spaced on uniform lots.
As required by
On May 3, 1973, the Commission approved the developer‘s preliminary plat for Temple Hills. App. 246-247. The plat indicated that the development was to include 676 acres, of which 260 acres would be open space, primarily in the form of a golf course. Id., at 422. A notation on the plat indicated that the number of “allowable dwelling units for total development” was 736, but lot lines were drawn in for only 469 units. The areas in which the remaining 276 units were to be placed were left blank and bore the notation “this parcel not to be developed until approved by the planning commission.”
The plat also contained a disclaimer that “parcels with note ‘this parcel not to be developed until approved by the planning commission’ not a part of this plat and not included in gross area.” Ibid. The density of 736 allowable dwelling units was calculated by multiplying the number of acres (676) by the number of units allowеd per acre (1.089). Id., at 361. Although the zoning regulations in effect in 1973 required that density be calculated “on the basis of total acreage less fifty percent (50%) of the land lying in the flood plain . . . and less fifty percent (50%) of all land lying on a slope with a grade in excess of twenty-five percent (25%),” CA App. 858, no deduction was made from the 676 acres for such land. Tr. 369.
Upon approval of the preliminary plat, the developer conveyed to the county a permanent open space easement for the golf course, and began building roads and installing utility lines for the project. App. 259-260. The developer spent approximately $3 million building the golf course, and another $500,000 installing sewer and water facilities. Defendant‘s Ex. 96. Before housing construction was to begin on a particular section, a final plat of that section was submitted for approval. Several sections, containing a total of 212 units, were given final approval by 1979. App. 260, 270, 278, 423. The preliminary plat, as well, was reapproved four times during that period. Id., at 270, 274, 362, 423.
In 1977, the county changed its zoning ordinance to require that calculations of allowable density exclude 10% of the total acreage to account for roads and utilities. Id., at 363; CA App. 862. In addition, the number of аllowable units was changed to one per acre from the 1.089 per acre allowed in 1973. Id., at 858, 862; Tr. 1169-1170, 1183. The Commission continued to apply the zoning ordinance and subdivision regulations in effect in 1973 to Temple Hills, however, and reapproved the preliminary plat in 1978. In August 1979, the Commission reversed its position and decided that plats submitted for renewal should be evaluated under the zoning
In January 1980, the Commission asked the developer to submit a revised preliminary plat before it sought final approval for the remaining sections of the subdivision. The Commission reasoned that this was necessary because the original preliminary plat contained a number of surveying errors, the land available in the subdivision had been decreased inasmuch as the State had condemned part of the land for a parkway, and the areas marked “reserved for future development” had never been platted. Plaintiff‘s Exs. 1078 and 1079; Tr. 164-168. A special committee (Temple Hills Committee) was appointed to work with the developer on the revision of the preliminary plat. Plaintiff‘s Ex. 1081; Tr. 169-170.
The devеloper submitted a revised preliminary plat for approval in October 1980.2 Upon review, the Commission‘s staff and the Temple Hills Committee noted several problems with the revised plat. App. 304-305. First, the allowable density under the zoning ordinance and subdivision regulations then in effect was 548 units, rather than the 736 units claimed under the preliminary plat approved in 1973. The difference reflected a decrease in 18.5 acres for the parkway, a decrease of 66 acres for the 10% deduction for roads, and an exclusion of 44 acres for 50% of the land lying on slopes exceeding a 25% grade. Second, two cul-de-sac roads that had become necessary because of the land taken for the parkway exceeded the maximum length allowed for such roads under the subdivision regulations in effect in both 1980 and 1973.
The Temple Hills Committee recommended that the Commission grant a waiver of the regulations regarding the length of the cul-de-sacs, the maximum grade of the roads, and the minimum frontage requirement. Id., at 297, 304-306. Without addressing the suggestion that those three requirements be waived, the Commission disapproved the plat on two other grounds: first, the plat did not comply with the density requirements of the zoning ordinance or subdivision regulations, because no deduction had been made for the land taken for the parkway, and because there had been no deduction for 10% of the acreage attributable to roads or for 50% of the land having a slope of more than 25%; and second, lots were placed on slopes with a grade greater than 25%. Plaintiff‘s Ex. 9112.
The developer then appealed to the County Board of Zoning Appeals for an “interpretation of the Residential Cluster zoning [ordinance] as it relates to Temple Hills.” App. 314.3
On November 26, respondent, Hamilton Bank of Johnson City, acquired through foreclosure the property in the Temple Hills subdivision that had not yet been developed, a total of 257.65 acres. Id., at 189-190. This included many of the parcels that had been left blank in the preliminary plat approved in 1973. In June 1981, respondent submitted two preliminary plats to the Commission—the plat that had been approved in 1973 and subsequently reapproved several times, and a plat indicating respondent‘s plans for the undeveloped areas, which was similar to the plat submitted by the developer in 1980. Id., at 88. The new plat proposed the development of 688 units; the reduction from 736 units represented respondent‘s concession that 18.5 acres should be removed from the acreage because that land had been taken for the parkway. Id., at 424, 425.
On June 18, the Commission disapproved the plat for eight reasons, including the density and grade problems cited in the October 1980 denial, as well as the objections the Temple Hills Committee had raised in 1980 to the length of two cul-de-sacs, the grade of various roads, the lack of fire protection, the disrepair of the main-access road, and the minimum frontage. Id., at 370. The Commission declined to follow the decision of the Board of Zoning Appeals that the plat
B
Respondent then filed this suit in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee, pursuant to
After a 3-week trial, the jury found that respondent had been denied the “economically viable” use of its property in violation of the Just Compensation Clause, and that the Commission was estopped under state law from requiring respondent to comply with the current zoning ordinance and
The court then granted judgment notwithstanding the verdict in favor of the Commission on the taking claim, reasoning in part that respondent was unable to derive economic benefit from its property on a temporary basis only, and that such a temporary deprivation, as a matter of law, cannot constitute a taking. Id., at 36, 41. In addition, the court modified its permanent injunction to require the Commission merely to apply the zoning ordinance and subdivision regulations in effect in 1973 to the project, rather than requiring approval of the plat, in order to allow the parties to resolve “legitimate technical questions of whether plaintiff meets the requirements of the 1973 regulations,” id., at 42, through the applicable state and local appeals procedures.7
A divided panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit reversed. 729 F. 2d 402 (1984). The court
The court rejected the District Court‘s holding that the taking verdict could not stand as a matter of law. A temporary denial of property could be a taking, and was to be analyzed in the same manner as a permanent taking. Finally, relying upon the dissent in San Diego Gas & Electric Co. v. San Diego, 450 U. S. 621, 636 (1981), the court determined that damages are required to compensate for a temporary taking.8
We granted certiorari to address the question whether Federal, State, and local Governments must pay money damages to a landowner whose property allegedly has been “taken” temporarily by the application of government regulations. 469 U. S. 815 (1984). Petitioners and their amici contend that we should answer the question in the negative by ruling that government regulation can never effect a “taking” within the meaning of the Fifth Amendment. They recognize that government regulation may be so restrictive that it denies a property owner all reasonable beneficial use of its property, and thus has the same effect as an appropriation of the property for public use, which concededly would be a taking under the Fifth Amendment. According to petitioners, however, regulation that has such an effect should nоt be viewed as a taking. Instead, such regulation should be viewed as a violation of the Fourteenth Amendment‘s Due Process Clause, because it is an attempt by government to use its police power to effect a result that is so unduly oppressive to the property owner that it constitutionally can be effected only through the power of eminent domain. Violations of the Due Process Clause, petitioners’ argument concludes, need not be remedied by “just compensation.”
The Court twice has left this issue undecided. San Diego Gas & Electric Co. v. San Diego, supra; Agins v. Tiburon, 447 U. S. 255, 263 (1980). Once again, we find that the question is not properly presented, and must be left for another day. For whether we examine the Planning Commission‘s application of its regulations under Fifth Amendment “taking” jurisprudence, or under the precept of due process, we conclude that respondent‘s claim is premature.
We examine the posture of respondent‘s cause of action first by viewing it as stating a claim under the Just Compensation Clause. This Court often has referred to regulation that “goes too far,” Pennsylvania Coal Co. v. Mahon, 260 U. S. 393, 415 (1922), as a “taking.” See, e. g., Ruckelshaus v. Monsanto Co., 467 U. S. 986, 1004-1005 (1984); Agins v. Tiburon, 447 U. S., at 260; PruneYard Shopping Center v. Robins, 447 U. S. 74, 83 (1980); Kaiser Aetna v. United States, 444 U. S. 164, 174 (1979); Andrus v. Allard, 444 U. S. 51, 65-66 (1979); Penn Central Transp. Co. v. New York City, 438 U. S. 104, 124 (1978); Goldblatt v. Hempstead, 369 U. S. 590, 594 (1962); United States v. Central Eureka Mining Co., 357 U. S. 155, 168 (1958). Even assuming that those decisions meant to refer literally to the Taking Clause of the Fifth Amendment, and therefore stand for the proposition that regulation may effect a taking for which the Fifth Amendment requires just compensation, see San Diego, 450 U. S., at 647-653 (dissenting opinion), and even assuming further that the Fifth Amendment requires the payment of money damages to compensate for such a taking, the jury verdict in this case cannot be upheld. Because respondent has not yet obtained a final decision regarding the application of the zoning ordinance and subdivision regulations to its property, nor utilized the procedures Tennessee provides for obtaining just compensation, respondent‘s claim is not ripe.
A
As the Court has made clear in several recent decisions, a claim that the application of government regulations effects a taking of a property interest is not ripe until the government entity charged with implementing the regulations has reached a final decision regarding the application of the regulations to the property at issue. In Hodel v. Virginia Surface Mining & Reclamation Assn., Inc., 452 U. S. 264
“There is no indication in the record that appellees have availed themselves of the opportunities provided by the Act to obtain administrative relief by requesting either a variance from the approximate-original-contour requirement of
§ 515(d) or a waiver from the surface mining restrictions in§ 522(e) . If [the property owners] were to seek administrative relief under these procedures, a mutually acceptable solution might well be reached with regard to individual properties, thereby obviating any need to address the constitutional questions. The potential for such administrative solutions confirms the conclusion that the taking issue decided by the District Court simply is not ripe for judicial resolution.” 452 U. S., at 297 (footnote omitted).
Similarly, in Agins v. Tiburon, supra, at 260, the Court held that a challenge to the application of a zoning ordinance was not ripe because the property owners had not yet submitted a plan for development of their property. In Penn Central Transp. Co. v. New York City, supra, the Court declined to find that the application of New York City‘s Landmarks Preservation Law to Grand Central Terminal effected a taking because, although the Landmarks Preservation Commission had disapproved a plan for a 50-story office building above the terminal, the property owners had not sought approval for any other plan, and it therefore was not clear whether the Commission would deny approval for all uses that would enable the plaintiffs to derive economic benefit from the property. 438 U. S., at 136-137.
Respondent‘s claim is in a posture similar to the claims the Court held premature in Hodel. Respondent has submitted a plan for developing its proрerty, and thus has passed beyond the Agins threshold. But, like the Hodel plaintiffs,
Respondent argues that it “did everything possible to resolve the conflict with the commission,” Brief for Respondent 42, and that the Commission‘s denial of approval for respondent‘s plat was equivalent to a denial of variances. The record does not support respondent‘s claim, however. There is no evidence that respondent applied to the Board of Zoning Appeals for variances from the zoning ordinance. As noted, the developer sought a ruling that the ordinance in effect in 1973 should be applied, but neither respondent nor the devel-
“[Respondent] stands ready to work with the Planning Commission concerning the necessary variances. Until the initial sketch is renewed, however, and the developer has an opportunity to do detailed engineering work it is impossible to determine the exact nature of any variances that may be needed.” Plaintiff‘s Ex. 9028, p. 6.
The Commission‘s regulations clearly indicated that unless a developer applied for a variance in writing and upon notice to other property owners, “any condition shown on the plat which would require a variance will constitute grounds for disapproval of the plat.” CA App. 933. Thus, in the face of respondent‘s refusal to follow the procedures for requesting a variance, and its refusal to provide specific information about the variances it would require, respondent hardly can maintain that the Commission‘s disapproval of the preliminary plat was equivalent to a final decision that no variances would be granted.
As in Hodel, Agins, and Penn Central, then, respondent has not yet obtained a final decision regarding how it will be allowed to develop its property. Our reluctance to examine taking claims until such a final decision has been made is compelled by the very nature of the inquiry required by the Just Compensation Clause. Although “[t]he question of what constitutes a ‘taking’ for purposes of the Fifth Amendment has provеd to be a problem of considerable difficulty,”
Here, for example, the jury‘s verdict indicates only that it found that respondent would be denied the economically feasible use of its property if it were forced to develop the subdivision in a manner that would meet each of the Commission‘s eight objections. It is not clear whether the jury would have found that the respondent had been denied all reasonable beneficial use of the property had any of the eight objections been met through the grant of a variance. Indeed, the expert witness who testified regarding the economic impact of the Commission‘s actions did not itemize the effect of each of the eight objections, so the jury would have been unable to discern how a grant of a varianсe from any one of the regulations at issue would have affected the profitability of the development. App. 377; see also id., at 102-104. Accordingly, until the Commission determines that no variances will be granted, it is impossible for the jury to find, on this record, whether respondent “will be unable to derive economic benefit” from the land.12
The difference is best illustrated by comparing the procedure for seeking a variance with the procedures that, under Patsy, respondent would not be required to exhaust. While it appears that the State provides procedures by which an aggrieved property owner may seek a declaratory judgment regarding the validity of zoning and planning actions taken by county authorities, see Fallin v. Knox County Bd. of Comm‘rs, 656 S. W. 2d 338 (Tenn. 1983);
Resort to those procedures would result in a judgment whether the Commission‘s actions violated any of respondent‘s rights. In contrast, resort to the procedure for obtaining variances would result in a conclusive determination by the Commission whether it would allow respondent to develop the subdivision in the manner respondent proposed. The Commission‘s refusal to approve the prеliminary plat does not determine that issue; it prevents respondent from developing its subdivision without obtaining the necessary variances, but leaves open the possibility that respondent
B
A second reason the taking claim is not yet ripe is that respondent did not seek compensation through the procedures the State has provided for doing so.13 The
The recognition that a property owner has not suffered a violation of the Just Compensation Clause until the owner has unsuccessfully attempted to obtain just compensation through the procedures provided by the State for obtaining such compensation is analogous to the Court‘s holding in Parratt v. Taylor, 451 U. S. 527 (1981). There, the Court ruled that a person deprived of property through a random and unauthorized act by a state employee does not state a claim under the Due Process Clause merely by alleging the deprivation of property. In such a situation, the Constitution does not require predeprivation process because it would be impossible or impracticable to provide a meaningful hearing before the deprivation. Instead, the Constitution is satisfied by the provision of meaningful postdeprivation proсess. Thus, the State‘s action is not “complete” in the sense of causing a constitutional injury “unless or until the state fails to provide an adequate postdeprivation remedy for the property loss.” Hudson v. Palmer, 468 U. S. 517, 532, n. 12 (1984). Likewise, because the Constitution does not require pretaking compensation, and is instead satisfied by a reasonable and adequate provision for obtaining compensation after the taking, the State‘s action here is not “complete” until the State fails to provide adequate compensation for the taking.14
“the owner of such land may petition for a jury of inquest, in which case the same proceеdings may be had, as near as may be, as hereinbefore provided; or he may sue for damages in the ordinary way . . . .”
§ 29-16-123 .
The Tennessee state courts have interpreted
IV
We turn to an analysis of respondent‘s claim under the due process theory that petitioners espouse. As noted, under that theory government regulation does not effect a taking for which the
The notion that excessive regulation can constitute a “taking” under the Just Compensation Clause stems from language in Pennsylvania Coal Co. v. Mahon, 260 U. S. 393 (1922). See San Diego, 450 U. S., at 649 (dissenting opinion). Writing for the Pennsylvania Coal Court, Justice Holmes stated: “The general rule at least is, that while property may be regulated to a certain extent, if regulation goes too far it will be recognized as a taking.” 260 U. S., at 415. Those who argue that excessive regulation should be considered a violation of the Due Process Clause rather than a “taking” assert that Pennsylvania Coal used the word “taking” not in the literal
The due process argument finds support, we are told, in the fact that the Pennsylvania Coal Court framed the question presented as “whether the police power can be stretched so far” as to destroy property rights, 260 U. S., at 413, and by the Court‘s emphasis upon the need to proceed by eminent domain rather than by regulation when the effect of the regulation would be to destroy property interests:
“Government hardly could go on if to some extent values incident to property could not be diminished without paying for every such change in the general law. As long recognized, some values аre enjoyed under an implied limitation and must yield to the police power. But
obviously the implied limitation must have its limits, or the contract and due process clauses are gone. One fact for consideration in determining such limits is the extent of the diminution. When it reaches a certain magnitude, in most if not in all cases there must be an exercise of eminent domain and compensation to sustain the act.” Ibid. (Emphasis added.)
Further, in earlier cases involving the constitutional limitations on the exercise of police power, Justice Holmes’ opinions for the Court made clear that the Court did not view overly restrictive regulation as triggering an award of compensation, but as an invalid means of accomplishing what constitutionally can be accomplished only through the exercise of eminent domain. See, e. g., Block v. Hirsh, 256 U. S. 135, 156 (1921); Hudson County Water Co. v. McCarter, 209 U. S. 349, 355 (1908); Martin v. District of Columbia, 205 U. S. 135, 139 (1907).
We need not pass upon the merits of petitioners’ arguments, for even if viewed as a question of due process, respondent‘s claim is premature. Viewing a regulation that “goes too far” as an invalid exercise of the police power, rather than as a “taking” for which just compensation must be paid, does not resolve the difficult problem of how to define “too far,” that is, how to distinguish the point at which regulatiоn becomes so onerous that it has the same effect as an appropriation of the property through eminent domain or physical possession.17 As we have noted, resolution of that
V
In sum, respondent‘s claim is premature, whether it is analyzed as a deprivation of property without due process under the
It is so ordered.
JUSTICE WHITE dissents from the holding that the issues in this case are not ripe for decision at this time.
JUSTICE POWELL took no part in the decision of this case.
The Court today discusses two methods for analyzing the constitutional injury that may result from the temporary application of government regulations dеnying property any economically viable use. The Court concludes that, under either approach, the respondent‘s claim is premature because the petitioner Williamson County Regional Planning Commission‘s 1981 disapproval of the respondent‘s preliminary plat did not constitute a final reviewable decision given the availability of a variance procedure that the respondent did not pursue. Ante, at 185, 199-200.
I join the Court‘s opinion without, however, departing from my views set forth in San Diego Gas & Electric Co. v. San Diego, 450 U. S. 621, 636 (1981) (BRENNAN, J., dissenting). Because “[i]nvalidation unaccompanied by payment of damages would hardly compensate the landowner for any economic loss suffered during the time his property was taken,” I believe that “once a court establishes that there was a regulatory ‘taking,’ the Constitution demands that the government entity pay just compensation for the period commencing on the date the regulation first effected the ‘taking,’ and ending on the date the government entity chooses to rescind or otherwise amend the regulation.” Id., at 653, 655. As the Court demonstrates in this case, however, “the Commission‘s denial of approval does not conclusively determine whether respondent will be denied all reasonable beneficial use of its property, and therefore is not a final, reviewable decision.” Ante, at 194. In addition, “[r]espondent has not shown that [Tennessee‘s] inverse condemnation procedure is unavailable or inadequate, and until it has utilized that procedure, its taking claim is premature.” Ante, at 196-197. Accordingly, I join the Court‘s opinion reversing the judgment of the Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.
Zoning restrictions are a species of governmental regulation that may impair the value of private property. The impairment may occur in one of two ways. The substance of a restriction may permanently curtail the economic value of the property. Or the procedures that must be employed, either to obtain permission to use property in a particular way or to remove an unlawful restriction on its use, may temporarily deprive the owner of a fair return on his investment. For convenience, I will refer to the former category as “permanent harms” and the latter as “temporary harms.”
Permanent harms fall into three subcategories. They may be impermissible even if the government is willing to pay for them.1 They may be permissible provided that the property owner is compensated for his loss.2 Or they may be permissible even if no compensation at all is paid.3 The permanent harm inflicted by the zoning regulations at issue in this case is either in the second or the third subcategory. As the Court demonstrates, until all available remedies have been exhausted, all we can say with any certainty is that petitioners may be required to abandon some of their restrictions upon respondent unless they are prepared to compensate respondent for whatever permanent harm they may cause.
In most litigation involving a challenge to a governmental regulation—and this case is no exception—the government contends that the public interest justifies the harm to the property owner and that no compensation need be paid. If the government fails to convince the court that such is the case—that is, if it is not entitled to impose an uncompensated
To the extent that this case involves a claim that the respondent has suffered an unlawful permanent harm—whether it is called a “taking” or merely an invalid attempt to regulate—the Court correctly explains that the issue is not yet ripe for decision. We do not yet know whether the harm inflicted by the zoning regulations is severe enough to lead to the conclusion that the zoning regulations “go too far.” We do know, however, that the process of determining how far the regulations do apply to respondent has already caused it a fairly serious harm—one that the jury calculated as worth $350,000. But that harm is in my second major category—it was a “temporary harm.”
Temporary harms resulting from a regulatory decision fall into two broad subcategories: (1) those that result from a
Temporary harms in the second subcategory are an unfortunate but necessary byproduct of disputes over the extent of the government‘s power to inflict permanent harms without paying for them. Every time a property owner is successful, in whole or in part, in a challenge to a governmental regulation—whether it be a zoning ordinance, a health regulation,5 or a traffic law6—he is almost certain to suffer some temporary harm in the process. At the least, he will usually incur significant litigation expenses and frequently he will incur substantial revenue losses because the use of his property has been temporarily curtailed while the dispute is being resolved.
In some situations these temporary harms are compensable. Statutes authorize the recovery of some costs of litigation, including attorney‘s fees. Sometimes the сost of obtaining regulatory approval is budgeted in an initial development plan and ultimately recovered from consumers. But in many cases—and apparently this is one—the property owner has no effective remedy for such a temporary harm
The Due Process Clause of the
In this case there was a substantial dispute not only about the permissibility of the permanent harm, but also over the fairness of the procedures employed by petitioners. Respondent made a claim that its constitutional right to due process of law had been violated. Conceivably it might have prevailed on that theory if it could have proved that an unconstitutional procedure had resulted in an unnecessary delay in obtaining approval of its development plan. See ante, at 183, n. 6. But its proof failed on that issue. The jury
There is nothing in the record to suggest that petitioners have tried to condemn any part of respondent‘s property, either permanently or for a limited period of time. There was no “temporary taking” of the kind involved in Kimball Laundry Co., supra, or General Motors Corp., supra. There has been a finding that there was no violation of procedural due process. Accordingly, the award of damages cannot stand and the judgment below must be reversed.
Notes
“a. To hear and decide appeals on any permit, decision, determination, or refusal made by the [County] Building Commissioner or other administrative official in the carrying out or enforcement of any provision of this Resolution; and to interprеt the Zoning map and this Resolution.
“c. To hear and decide applications for variances from the terms of this Resolution. Such variances shall be granted only where by reason of ex-
ceptional narrowness, shallowness, or shape of a specific piece of property which at the time of adoption of this Resolution was a lot of record, or where by reason of exceptional topographic situations or conditions of a piece of property the strict application of the provisions of this Resolution would result in practical difficulties to or undue hardship upon the owner of such property.” Plaintiff‘s Ex. 9112.See also
“Variances may be granted under the following conditions:
“Where the subdivider can show that strict adherence to these regulations would cause unnecessary hardship, due to conditions beyond the control of the subdivider. If the subdivider creates the hardship due to his design or in an effort to increase the yield of lots in his subdivision, the variance will not be granted.
“Where the Planning Commission decides that there are topographical or other conditions peculiar to the site, and a depаrture from their regulations will not destroy their intent.” CA App. 932.
“Each applicant must file with the Planning Commission a written request for variance stating at least the following:
“a. The variance requested.
“b. Reason or circumstances requiring the variance.
“c. Notice to the adjacent property owners that a variance is being requested.
“Without the application any condition shown on the plat which would require a variance will constitute grounds for disapproval of the plat.” Id., at 933.
“I contend that the road grade and slope question . . . is adequately provided for by both the [subdivision] Regulations and the Zoning Ordinance. In both, the Planning Commission is given the authority to approve roads that have grades in excess of 10%.
“In our particular case, it was common knowledge from the beginning that due to the character of the land involved that there would be roads that exceeded the 10% slope. In fact in our first Section there is a stretch of road that exceeds thе 10%; therefore I respectfully request that this letter be made an official part of the Planning Commission Minutes of January 3, 1980 and further the Zoning Approval which has been granted be allowed to stand without any changes.” Defendants’ Ex. 96.
Even assuming, arguendo, that the letter constituted a request for a variance, respondent‘s taking claim nevertheless is not ripe. There is no evidence that respondent requested variances from the regulations that
formed the basis of the other objections raised by the Commission, such as those regulating the length of cul-de-sacs. Absent a final decision regarding the application of all eight of the Commission‘s objections, it is impossible to tell whether the land retained any reasonable beneficial use or whether respondent‘s expectation interests had been destroyed.