PLAINTIFF DEMONSTRATED DEFENDANTS’ CONSTRUCTION OF A FENCE VIOLATED A VALID RESTRICTIVE COVENANT IN THE PARTIES’ DEEDS (FOURTH DEPT).
The Fourth Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment should have been granted. Plaintiff alleged defendants violated a restrictive covenant in the parties’ deeds by constructing a fence along the property line:
Plaintiff and defendants own adjoining properties in Wayne County with views of Sodus Bay, and those properties can be traced to one original grantor, nonparty Sodus Bay Heights Land Co., Inc. (Land Company). The Land Company created a subdivision and, between the years of 1924 and 1937, it sold numerous parcels in accordance with its planned development. Plaintiff and defendants obtained title to their property through chains of title that date back to owners who purchased their property directly from the Land Company. Both properties are subject to two relevant restrictive covenants that run with the land. The first stated “[t]hat no line fence shall be erected on said lot without the written consent of the [Land Company], or its successors or assigns.” The second stated “[t]hat no unnecessary trees or other obstructions shall be permitted on said lot which shall hide the view of other residents in Sodus Bay Heights.” * * *
Generally, “[r]estrictive covenants will be enforced when the intention of the parties is clear and the limitation is reasonable and not offensive to public policy”… , and it is well settled that the party seeking to enforce such a restriction “must prove, by clear and convincing evidence, the scope, as well as the existence, of the restriction” … . Here, plaintiff established as a matter of law the scope and the existence of a restriction against fences. Dodge v Baker, 2021 NY Slip Op 02891, Fourth Dept 5-7-21