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****************************************************** The ``officially released'' date that appears near the beginning of each opinion is the date the opinion will be published in the Connecticut Law Journal or the date it was released as a slip opinion. The operative date for the beginning of all time periods for filing postopinion motions and petitions for certification is the ``officially released'' date appearing in the opinion. In no event will any such motions be accepted before the ``officially released'' date. All opinions are subject to modification and technical correction prior to official publication in the Connecticut Reports and Connecticut Appellate Reports. In the event of discrepancies between the electronic version of an opinion and the print version appearing in the Connecticut Law Journal and subsequently in the Connecticut Reports or Connecticut Appellate Reports, the latest print version is to be considered authoritative. The syllabus and procedural history accompanying the opinion as it appears on the Commission on Official Legal Publications Electronic Bulletin Board Service and in the Connecticut Law Journal and bound volumes of official reports are copyrighted by the Secretary of the State, State of Connecticut, and may not be reproduced and distributed without the express written permission of the Commission on Official Legal Publications, Judicial Branch, State of Connecticut. ****************************************************** COMMISSIONER OF TRANSPORTATION v. TOWPATH ASSOCIATES (SC 16306) COMMISSIONER OF TRANSPORTATION v. JOSEPH F. WILUSZ ET AL. (SC 16307)
Borden, Katz, Palmer, Sullivan and Vertefeuille, Js.* Argued November 2, 2000--officially released March 27, 2001 Counsel

Anthony Jannotta, assistant attorney general, with whom were Robert T. Morrin, assistant attorney general, and, on the brief, Richard Blumenthal, attorney general, for the appellant (plaintiff). Robert B. Basine, for the appellees (defendants).
Opinion

KATZ, J. In these consolidated appeals, the plaintiff, the commissioner of the department of transportation (department), challenges the judgments of the judge trial referee (trial court) reassessing condemnation awards to the defendant Towpath Associates (Towpath) and the defendants Joseph F. Wilusz and Carol

C. Wilusz (Wilusz),1 respectively, in connection with the taking of the defendants' properties by eminent domain. The department contends that the trial court improperly assessed two stone bridge abutments, awarding damages as just compensation based on the value of the property to the state, rather than assessing their value in the ordinary market. We reverse the judgments of the trial court and remand the cases for a new trial. The following facts reasonably were found by the trial court. The properties at issue lie on opposite sides of the Nepaug River in the town of Canton. The property line runs from west to east down the center of the river. On each bank there exists an abandoned stone bridge abutment and railroad track bed. The Towpath property is located on the south side of the river; the Wilusz property is on the north side. Although the railroad tracks and the bridge, which once had spanned the river connecting the properties, had been removed, the bridge abutments maintained an estimated useful life of 100 years. Neither property contains any other improvements. The two parcels are located in a designated flood plain district and are zoned to permit single-family dwellings on one-half acre lots. The trial court recognized that, although the size of the condemned parcels precluded any development under the zoning regulations applicable to the flood plain, a special exception existed concerning the construction of bridges thereon. On April 9, 1998, the department issued separate notices of condemnation and assessments of damages to Towpath and Wilusz under General Statutes

Download Commissioner of Transportation v. Towpath Associates (dissent below).pdf

Connecticut Law