Page v. City of Santa Rosa

SEA WELL, J.

The allegations of plaintiff’s first amended complaint, whereby he prays for injunctive relief, in substance are that the City of Santa Eosa was and is a municipality, organized and existing under a freeholders’ charter and, by virtue of said charter, exercises all its powers of government through the city council; that said city is and for a number of years last past has been the owner of a water system, used and maintained for the purpose of supplying the

inhabitants

of said city with sufficient water for all ordinary, usual, domestic, household and sanitation purposes; that its Board of Public Utilities at all times herein mentioned was in control of the operation of said water system; that on May 4, 1934, and for many years prior thereto, plaintiff has been and now is the owner of a certain apartment dwelling located in said city and, during all of said time, defendants have furnished plaintiff with sufficient water for domestic purposes from said system “that was used in and about the said premises for domestic purposes and said water is necessary to the full enjoyment, health, convenience and cleanliness of the tenants therein”; that all the water supplied by the

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defendants to said premises and which was used on the premises during the months of February and March, 1934, was used wholly for domestic purposes by families residing on said premises and for no other purpose; that section 25, City Charter, provides that “the Board of Public Utilities shall provide for furnishing water in a reasonable quantity free for domestic quantity use”. (Respondents’ brief supplements the concluding clause of the above sentence by adding the words “but there shall be no free water for other than domestic use”.)

Continuing, it is alleged that neither during the month of February nor March, 1934, or at all was any water used on said premises by the occupants thereof or any other person in quantities greater than was necessary for the health, convenience, cleanliness and comfort of the occupants of the said premises; that on May 4, 1934, defendants, without right, made demand of plaintiff that he pay a tax or charge for water used by him at said premises and threatened to and would, if the sum demanded was not paid (unless restrained by order of court) turn off plaintiff’s water supply at said premises, thereby depriving plaintiff of his right to receive a reasonable quantity of water for domestic use on said premises, as provided by said city charter. Plaintiff alleges that his premises will become unsuitable for human habitation and he will be deprived of all beneficial use of said premises. Plaintiff further alleges that the exact quantity of water necessary for reasonable domestic use in said premises is not known to him and it cannot be ascertained; that the amount of water for reasonable use is dependent upon the seasons, weather conditions, the state of health and number of occupants and additions to the families and circumstances over which he has no control.