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San Diego County Water Authority v. Mireiter9/29/1993
COURT OF APPEAL OF CALIFORNIA, FOURTH APPELLATE DISTRICT DISTRICT, DIVISION ONE
No. D016677.
1993.CA.42115 ; 23 Cal. Rptr. 2d 455; 18 Cal. App. 4th 1808
Decided: September 29, 1993.
SAN DIEGO COUNTY WATER AUTHORITY, PLAINTIFF AND APPELLANT,
v.
JOHN MIREITER ET AL., DEFENDANTS AND RESPONDENTS.
Superior Court of San Diego County, No. N47861, Raymond F. Zvetina, Judge.
Jennings, Engstrand & Henrikson and Bruce W. Beach for Plaintiff and Appellant.
Endeman, Lincoln, Turek & Heater, Ronald L. Endeman, Donald R. Lincoln and Linda B. Reick for Defendants and Respondents.
Opinion by Wiener, Acting P. J., with Work and Todd, JJ., Concurring.
Wiener
In eminent domain cases, the "date of valuation" generally precedes the date of trial at which the value of the property is
determined. The question here is whether a jury, in determining the amount of compensation due the property owner, is required to consider facts discovered during this lag which tend to reduce the property's fair market value. We conclude that the language of Code of Civil Procedure section 1263.320, which defines "fair market value" as "the highest price on the date of valuation that would be agreed to by a seller . . . and a buyer . . . each dealing with the other with full knowledge of all the uses and purposes for which the property is reasonably adaptable and available," necessarily implies such facts must be taken into account. Accordingly, because the jury here was not properly instructed with respect to such facts, we reverse the judgment.
FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND
Defendants John and Maria Mireiter, Joseph and Lee Mireiter, and Josef and Adelheid Bauer owned a rectangular piece of undeveloped property consisting of 7.38 acres located in the City of San Marcos. Studies in 1979 and 1986 had identified four "vernal pools" located on the property. Vernal pools are temporary ponds of water, varying in size and duration, which form during the rainy season and disappear in the summer. They are associated with various species of plants and animals, some of which are endangered and some of which are found only in San Diego County.
To facilitate the construction of a water pipeline, plaintiff San Diego County Water Authority (the Authority) filed this action in 1990 seeking condemnation of a 100-foot-wide strip totaling 1.64 acres running through the middle of the property owned by defendants. This left 2 "remainders," a northern parcel totaling 2.58 acres and a southern parcel consisting of 3.16 acres. In June 1990 the Authority deposited $286,743 with the court as the probable amount of compensation . Pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure section 1263.110, this deposit established June 29, 1990, as the date of value for the purpose of awarding compensation . The Authority took possession of the property a month later by virtue of an order entered pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure section 1255.460. Trial was set for January 1992, with the only issue being the amount of compensation to be paid.
In May 1991 a biologist inspecting the property located several new vernal pools not previously identified in the 1979 and 1986 reports. The Authority contended that the effect of this new discovery was to r
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