Opinion
Decided May 12, 2009.
APPEAL from an order of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court in the Fourth Judicial Department, entered October 3, 2008. The Appellate Division, with two Justices dissenting, affirmed a judgment (denominated judgment and order) of the Supreme Court, Ontario County (William F. Kocher, J.), entered in a proceeding pursuant to CPLR article 78, which had annulled the determination of respondent Town of Canandaigua Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) regarding a proposed lakefront residential community.
Petitioners sought to build a residential community that would include a clubhouse on land bordering Canandaigua Lake. They also proposed to erect a sundeck and docks with boat slips. The nongovernmental respondents included individuals who own property in proximity to the proposed development, and two associations whose members own residential property in the lake watershed. The Appellate Division concluded that Supreme Court properly determined that the resident respondents and the association respondents (collectively, respondents) lacked standing to appeal to the ZBA from the zoning officer's determination with respect to the application of the Canandaigua Lake Uniform Docking and Mooring Law (UDML) because respondents were not the adjacent upland owners affected by the zoning officer's determination; properly annulled the ZBA's determination based upon respondents' lack of standing and reinstated the zoning officer's determination that the sundeck was a dock within the meaning of the UDML; properly annulled the ZBA's determination that the docks and slips must be in conformance with the residential use category of the UDML; and properly determined that the clubhouse was a private water oriented recreational facility pursuant to the Town of Canandaigua Zoning Law and thus that petitioners could seek a special use permit.
Matter of RSM W. Lake Rd. LLC v Town of Canandaigua Zoning Bd. of Appeals, 55 AD3d 1222, affirmed
Brenna, Brenna Boyce, PLLC, Rochester ( Sheldon W. Boyce of counsel), for East Shore Association of Canandaigua Lake, Inc. and another, appellants.
Hiscock Barclay LLP, Rochester ( Thomas F. Walsh of counsel), for RSM West Lake Road, LLC and others, respondents.
Before: Chief Judge LIPPMAN and Judges CIPARICK, GRAFFEO, READ, SMITH, PIGOTT and JONES.
OPINION OF THE COURT
The order of the Appellate Division should be affirmed, with costs.
Appellants East Shore Association of Canandaigua Lake, Inc. and Canandaigua Lake Watershed Alliance, Inc. had standing to appeal to the Town of Canandaigua Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) from the zoning officer's determinations that the clubhouse is a private water oriented recreational facility within the meaning of the Town of Canandaigua Zoning Law (Zoning Law) and that the docks, moorings and boat slips are regulated by the "all other land uses" category of the Canandaigua Lake Uniform Docking and Mooring Law (UDML) ( see Matter of Sun-Brite Car Wash v Board of Zoning Appeals of Town of N. Hempstead, 69 NY2d 406, 412-414; Town Law § 267-a; UDML 44-10 [A]). Moreover, the ZBA had jurisdiction to review the zoning officer's determinations interpreting the UDML, which was adopted pursuant to article 16 of the Town Law, as authorized by Navigation Law § 46-a (4) (a) ( see Town Law § 267-a). However, the ZBA's determinations as to the clubhouse under the Zoning Law and the docks, moorings and boat slips under the UDML were arbitrary and capricious. Finally, any issue as to whether the proposed sundeck is a dock within the meaning of the UDML has become moot inasmuch as the sundeck was removed from the overall project subsequent to the Appellate Division's determination.
On review of submissions pursuant to section 500.11 of the Rules of the Court of Appeals ( 22 NYCRR 500.11), order affirmed, with costs, in a memorandum.