Collard v. Incorp. Village of Flower Hill
Court of Appeals of New York
421 N.E.2d 818 (N.Y. 1981)
The Village of Flower Hill (defendant) rezoned property for business use in 1976 on the condition that the owners execute a covenant barring new construction without the Village's consent, with no provision that consent could not be unreasonably withheld; Collard (plaintiff) later acquired the property and asked the Village to approve enlarging its structures, but the Village refused without giving any reason. Collard sued, claiming the refusal was arbitrary, unreasonable, and unconstitutional; the lower courts dismissed his claim.
Whether, when a property is rezoned subject to a covenant that there will be no construction on the property without the municipality's consent, and there is no provision that the consent may not be unreasonably withheld, the municipality can be compelled to consent to construction or give an acceptable reason for its failure to consent.