United States v. Commodore Park, Inc.

Background

A company that owned a residential development along Mason Creek sued after the United States Navy dredged nearby Willoughby Bay and deposited the dredged material in Mason Creek. The fill raised the creek bed, cut off the creek’s outlet to the bay, stopped normal tidal flow, and left the creek semi-stagnant. The owner said those changes destroyed the creek’s navigability and reduced the market value of its adjacent fast lands and riparian benefits.

Reasoning

The key question was whether the government had to pay for the owner’s lost waterfront value and lost access when it altered navigable waters to improve naval and shore facilities. The Court accepted the lower courts’ factual findings but concluded that Congress — and agencies it authorized — have broad power to alter navigable waters to foster navigation and commerce. Because the project was part of an integrated program to improve harbor and naval facilities, the deposit in Mason Creek was within that authority. The Court held that riparian rights and the state-law title to submerged land are subordinate to federal power over navigation, so there was no compensable taking under the Fifth Amendment in this situation.

Real world impact

The decision means federal agencies may undertake navigation and military-related waterway projects that change or block small creeks without owing compensation for the resulting loss in nearby land values tied to access. Waterfront owners whose land is not physically invaded but whose market value falls because a navigable waterway is altered will face limits on recovery.

Dissents or concurrances

One Justice said the lower court’s judgment should be affirmed for reasons stated below, signaling a disagreement over whether the deposit in the creek was truly related to navigation.