Opinion

Weber v. Pieretti

  • 77 N.J. Super. 423
  • 186 A.2d 702
Court
New Jersey Superior Court Appellate Division
Filed
Dec 19, 1962
Status
Published
On the bench
Judges Goldmann, Freund and Foley
Cited by
15 cases
Authority
More cited than 75.6%

The opinion

77 N.J. Super. 423 (1962)

186 A.2d 702

LOUIS WEBER ET AL., PLAINTIFFS-RESPONDENTS,

v.

JOSEPH PIERETTI, JR. AND MARIE PIERETTI, INDIVIDUALLY AND T/A BROOKDALE BEVERAGE CO., DEFENDANTS-APPELLANTS, AND MAYOR AND COUNCIL OF THE TOWN OF BLOOMFIELD ET AL., DEFENDANTS-RESPONDENTS.

Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate Division.

Argued December 17, 1962.

Decided December 19, 1962.

Before Judges GOLDMANN, FREUND and FOLEY.

*424 Mr. Bernard Hellring argued the cause for appellants ( Messrs. Hellring, Lindeman and Lieberman, attorneys; Mr. Norman Bruck, on the brief).

Mr. David A. Rappeport argued the cause for respondents.

PER CURIAM.

The judgment under appeal is affirmed for the reasons stated by Judge Mintz sitting in the Chancery Division, Weber v. Pieretti, 72 N.J. Super. 184 (1962), except that we do not join in that part of his decision relating to collateral estoppel by judgment (at pages 192-3).

Defendants Pieretti call attention to the fact that the trial judge failed to consider their contention that their present business operations constitute no more than "a valid intensification of their valid pre-existing non-conforming use." Our reading of the lengthy record convinces us that these operations are not merely an intensification of a use predating the adoption of the Bloomfield zoning ordinance of 1930. The proofs clearly demonstrate that the Pieretti enterprise constitutes an invalid enlargement of the business beyond all reasonable limits — an enlargement deliberately and brazenly pursued in the face of repeated complaints to municipal officials by neighbors, municipal court proceedings, and the warning signals raised in Pieretti v. Johnson, 132 N.J.L. 576 ( Sup. Ct. 1945), and Pieretti v. Mayor and Council, etc., Bloomfield, 35 N.J. 382 (1961).

Defendants rely heavily on Moore v. Bridgewater Twp., 69 N.J. Super. 1 ( App. Div. 1961), and claim it is controlling in the particular circumstances of this case. Moore is inapposite; it involved a wasting or diminishing asset, namely, a quarry. Its holding must be considered as strictly limited to such an asset. The Pieretti soda bottling operation does not, of course, fall into that category.

Affirmed.

This is a copy of a public record, reproduced as it was published. It is not legal advice, and it may not be the version a court would rely on. Check the official source before you cite it.

A word about cookies

We need a few to keep you signed in and the library working. The rest help us see which pages people use and where they get stuck. They stay off unless you say yes.