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AIR, LIGHT AND ACCESS EASEMENTS COULD NOT BE ASSERTED AGAINST THE STATE AS OWNER OF THE PUBLIC HIGHWAY, RESIDENTS DID NOT HAVE STANDING UNDER SEQRA TO CONTEST CONSTRUCTION OF PUBLIC COMFORT STATIONS (SECOND DEPT).

The Second Department determined that residents of a condominium across the street from the proposed construction of beach-front comfort stations did not have standing to contest the construction under the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA). The court further found that the petitioners’ air, light and access easements could not be asserted against the state, which owns the public road where the construction will be located:

“To establish standing under SEQRA, a petitioner must show (1) an environmental injury that is in some way different from that of the public at large, and (2) that the alleged injury falls within the zone of interests sought to be protected or promoted by SEQRA” … . The alleged harm cannot be “too speculative and conjectural to demonstrate an actual and specific injury-in-fact” … . Close proximity alone is insufficient to confer standing where there are no zoning issues involved, and general environmental concerns will not suffice … . Moreover, “[t]o qualify for standing to raise a SEQRA challenge, a party must demonstrate that it will suffer an injury that is environmental and not solely economic in nature” … . Here, the petitioners’ alleged environmentally related injuries are too speculative and conjectural to demonstrate an actual and specific injury-in-fact … .

“When lands adjoin private property an easement of light, air and access over such property does not exist, under ordinary circumstances, merely because of the proximity of the lands to the private property” … .. However, an owner of land abutting a highway or street possesses, as incident to his or her ownership, easements of light, air, and access, irrespective of whether the owner owns the fee of the highway or the street itself … . Nevertheless, “[w]hen the fee of the highway has been transferred to the State, the State may use the highway for any public purpose not inconsistent with or prejudicial to its use for highway purposes . . . [and] [t]he mere disturbance of the rights of light, air and access of abutting owners on such a highway by the imposition of a new use, consistent with its use as an open public street, must be tolerated by them and no right of action arises therefrom, although such use interferes with the enjoyment of the premises”… . For example, the maintenance of trees on a street for the purposes of ornament and shade has been determined to be a proper street use … .

Here, the proposed construction will not completely block the petitioners’ ocean view nor prevent the petitioners from using the public street. Rather, the length of the dead-end street will be shortened and several public parking spaces will be removed. The turnaround will still be intact, although moved 23 feet to the north, and access to the petitioners’ driveway and building’s entrance will not be impeded … . In addition, the disputed comfort station will be open to, and for the purpose of, serving the public … . Matter of Shapiro v Torres, 2017 NY Slip Op 06281, Second Dept 8-23-17

 

REAL PROPERTY (AIR, LIGHT AND ACCESS EASEMENTS COULD NOT BE ASSERTED AGAINST THE STATE AS OWNER OF THE PUBLIC HIGHWAY, RESIDENTS DID NOT HAVE STANDING UNDER SEQRA TO CONTEST CONSTRUCTION OF PUBLIC COMFORT STATIONS UNDER (SECOND DEPT))/EASEMENTS (AIR, LIGHT AND ACCESS EASEMENTS COULD NOT BE ASSERTED AGAINST THE STATE AS OWNER OF THE PUBLIC HIGHWAY, RESIDENTS DID NOT HAVE STANDING UNDER SEQRA TO CONTEST CONSTRUCTION OF PUBLIC COMFORT STATIONS UNDER (SECOND DEPT))/AIR LIGHT AND ACCESS  (AIR, LIGHT AND ACCESS EASEMENTS COULD NOT BE ASSERTED AGAINST THE STATE AS OWNER OF THE PUBLIC HIGHWAY, RESIDENTS DID NOT HAVE STANDING UNDER SEQRA TO CONTEST CONSTRUCTION OF PUBLIC COMFORT STATIONS UNDER (SECOND DEPT))/ENVIRONMENTAL LAW (STANDING, RESIDENTS DID NOT HAVE STANDING UNDER SEQRA TO CONTEST CONSTRUCTION OF PUBLIC COMFORT STATIONS UNDER (SECOND DEPT))/STANDING (ENVIRONMENTAL LAW, RESIDENTS DID NOT HAVE STANDING UNDER SEQRA TO CONTEST CONSTRUCTION OF PUBLIC COMFORT STATIONS UNDER (SECOND DEPT))/STATE ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY REVIEW ACT (STANDING, RESIDENTS DID NOT HAVE STANDING UNDER SEQRA TO CONTEST CONSTRUCTION OF PUBLIC COMFORT STATIONS UNDER (SECOND DEPT))/MUNICIPAL LAW (ENVIRONMENTAL LAW, RESIDENTS DID NOT HAVE STANDING UNDER SEQRA TO CONTEST CONSTRUCTION OF PUBLIC COMFORT STATIONS UNDER (SECOND DEPT))/HIGHWAYS (AIR, LIGHT AND ACCESS EASEMENTS COULD NOT BE ASSERTED AGAINST THE STATE AS OWNER OF THE PUBLIC HIGHWAY (SECOND DEPT).

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