City of Los Angeles v. Greve

DORAN, J. This is an action to quiet title. Plaintiffs obtained judgment and defendant appeals.

The facts briefly are as follows: On the 31st day of March, 1925, the council of the city of Los Angeles adopted an ordinance declaring its intention to widen Washington Boulevard in the city of Los Angeles between Alameda and Figueroa Streets, under and according to the Street Opening Act of 1903 as amended. Bonds were issued to repre[89]sent unpaid assessments levied pursuant to the proceedings under the Improvement Bond Law of 1911. The bond representing the unpaid assessments against the property of defendant was foreclosed by the owner of said bond, to wit, the Board of Pension Commissioners of the city of Los Angeles, the property sold and a treasurer’s deed issued on the 27th day of May, 1937. The bond was in the principal sum of $3,119.96. The balance due at the time of sale was $2,807.96.

The complaint set up all of the proceedings had and taken by the several officers, agents and employees of the city council for the widening of Washington Boulevard from the time of the adoption of the ordinance of intention to the issuance of a treasurer’s deed upon the foreclosure of the bond issued to represent the assessment as aforesaid. The defendant property owner by way of “answer and counterclaim” alleged that the city council, in adopting the ordinance of intention, wrongfully, unlawfully and illegally determined that the public interest, etc., required the improvement, and wrongfully, unlawfully and illegally fixed the boundaries of the assessment district. It was further alleged that the improvement did not benefit the parcels of land in the district, but was primarily for the benefit of other lands, etc.; that the council created the district for the purpose of making Washington Boulevard a major street artery and not for the benefit of the property owners within the district.

The questions involved in the within appeal, quoting from appellant’s brief, are as follows: “1. Is the ‘Improvement Act of 1911’ (Act 8199, Deering’s Gen. Laws) conclusive as to the matters which are essential to due process of law? 2. Has a special assessment taxpayer, under the ‘Improvement Act of 1911’ recourse to the courts for the purpose of raising fundamental questions involving the purposes of the so-called improvement and the character of its benefits? 3. Has the taxpayer a right to prove that it was a plain abuse of discretion, as a matter of law, in effect, a fraud upon the taxpayer, for the city council to create the special assessment district and issue the bonds?”