County of San Mateo v. Consolidated Farms, Inc.

BRAY, P. J.

Plaintiff appeals from a judgment in favor of defendants.

Question Presented

Were defendants operating a commercial hog ranch within the meaning of an ordinance defining such ranch?

Facts

San Mateo County Ordinance Number 568 (codified in San Mateo County Ordinance Code, § 5560.1, div. V, pt. Two, ch. 7) provides: 1 ‘ Commercial hog ranch shall mean any premises where more than forty (40) head of swine are maintained, raised, fed or fattened, or where two or more head of swine are maintained, raised, fed or fattened upon commercial garbage. ’ ’

Consolidated Farms, a California corporation, owns a 2,500-

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acre ranch in San Gregorio, San Mateo County. Farms is in the farming and stock raising business, including the raising of hogs, in California and Nevada. In December, 1954, Farms had a 100-acre portion of the San Gregorio ranch surveyed, which was later divided into one-acre plots. Farms paid for the surveying and fencing of the parcels and for supplying waterlines, roads and feeding troughs.

On June 15, 1955, Farms leased for 15 years the 100-acre portion to the individual named defendants as tenants in common. With one exception, the lessees were the stockholders in Farms and their wives. By a judgment of partition of the lease the leased property was divided among the lessees into 100 one-acre plots. In June or July, the lessees entered into an oral agreement with David Arata, president of Farms, a stockholder and named defendant, whereby Arata would act as trustee for each lessee in conducting hog raising on the parcels.

The individual lessees advanced no cash for purchase of hogs or feed from Farms. Arata kept separate accounts for each lessee showing expenses and credits for hogs sold. An accounting was made each year. Between July, 1955, and December, 1955, the maximum number of hogs on the 100 acres was 1,554 at any one time; from then to the time of filing of the complaint, 137; and in June, 1957, the number was 150. No more than 40 hogs have ever been on any one parcel, no commercial garbage was used as feed and no commercial hog ranch license was obtained by the lessees or by Farms.