WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that Westerly landowner Anthony Palazzalo may pursue his claim against the State of Rhode Island in a dispute over how he wished to develop his property.
According to reports, Palazzo, who owns 18 acres of wetlands in Westerly, filed four applications between 1961 and 1985 to fill all or most of the wetlands. State regulators rejected each claim. Palazzolo subsequently sued the state, contending the government should pay him because its regulations kept him from developing the land — and that he could have earned $3.15 million if he had been able to build a 74-unit residential structure there.
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The Rhode Island Superior Court and the Rhode Island Supreme Court had both dismissed Palazzolo’s lawsuit, saying that he was aware that his development rights were limited when he took direct ownership of the land in 1978. (He had owned the land through a corporation prior to that). In addition, the state court said, Palazzolo never sought permission to proceed with the 74-unit development, or to develop the land in a way that required less landfill. The state court also said Palazzolo could gain some value from the land by building on adjacent, higher ground.
According to reports, Palazzolo’s case (Palazzolo v. Rhode Island, 99-2047) was supported by friends-of-the-court briefs filed by Defenders of Property Rights, the American Farm Bureau, and the California Coastal Property Owners Association. The Justice Department, the National Conference of State Legislatures, and the National Wildlife Federation supported Rhode Island, reports said.
