Opinion
September 24, 1990
Appeal from the Supreme Court, Westchester County (Donovan, J.).
Ordered that the order is affirmed insofar as appealed from, with costs.
It is well settled that "[t]he proponent of a summary judgment motion must make a prima facie showing of entitlement to judgment as a matter of law, tendering sufficient evidence to eliminate any material issues of fact from the case" (Winegrad v. New York Univ. Med. Center, 64 N.Y.2d 851, 853; Zuckerman v. City of New York, 49 N.Y.2d 557, 562). The failure to make such showing requires denial of the motion, regardless of the sufficiency of the opposing papers (see, Winegrad v. New York Univ. Med. Center, supra; Coley v. Michelin Tire Corp., 99 A.D.2d 795). The defendants have failed to meet their burden.
The instrument which is the subject of this action is ambiguous and subject to different interpretations with respect to the meaning of the terms "obligation of maintenance" and "project area." Where the intent of the parties depends upon a choice between reasonable inferences to be drawn from extrinsic evidence, interpretation must be determined by the trier of fact (see, River Park Assocs. v. Meyerbank Elec. Co., 116 A.D.2d 709, 710; Hartford Acc. Indem. Co. v. Wesolowski, 33 N.Y.2d 169, 172). At bar, the supporting and opposing papers do not unequivocally clarify the parties' intent. Therefore there are triable issues of fact concerning the intention of the parties (see, Mallad Constr. Corp. v. County Fed. Sav. Loan Assn., 32 N.Y.2d 285, 291; Yogurts Intl. v. Grand Union Co., 92 A.D.2d 936). Brown, J.P., Kooper, Harwood and Balletta, JJ., concur.