* This Chronology was compiled by David E. Cole, Editor-in-Chief, BOSTON COLLEGE ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS LAW REVIEW, 2002–03. It is based on the backgrounds of the cases, the trial transcript, the Town of Westerly Registry Of Deeds’ records, the Town of Westerly Tax Assessor’s records, the Rhode Island Secretary of State’s records, the Coastal Resources Management Council’s files, email correspondence with Mr. Palazzolo’s counsel and the Rhode Island Attorney General’s office, and phone conversations and an interview with Anthony Palazzolo. Most material may be found in the CRMC’s original files relating to Palazzolo.
1 The subdivided lots can be found on the Tax Assessment Map as lots Nos. 53, 55, 58–65, 146, and 147, mostly bordering Atlantic Avenue. All of these lots are outside the scope of the Palazzolo case. The permit applications generally use the Subdivision Plat’s lot numbers. These maps can be found at the end of this Chronology.
2 It is unclear if the lack of diligent regulatory oversight or lack of regulations allowed non-permitted filling of coastal wetlands at this time, but from 1955 to 1964 approximately ten percent of Rhode Island’s coastal wetlands of forty acres or more were filled without permits. See Testimony of David Reis, Principle Environmental Scientist for Coastal Resources Management Council, Trial Transcript at 519–20, Palazzolo v. Rhode Island, No. 88-0297 (R.I. Super. Ct. June 18, 1997) [hereinafter Trial Transcript].
3 Subdivision Plat.
4 Subdivision Plat lot No. 2.
5 Natale Urso had informally transacted all the pre-1961 conveyances by SGI prior to Palazzolo’s buying-in, so that he was not a party to those transactions. Several houses were built on these lots relatively quickly. Natale Urso, acting as President of SGI, signed all these pre-1961 deeds and Urso received the revenue personally. In addition, Mr. Palazzolo says that he was the President of SGI since its incorporation, and Urso would not have authority to sell SGI’s land. The amount of consideration paid is not known for most of these conveyances: the majority of lots sold from the 18-acre parcel by SGI had no purchase price noted, and had an inscription saying “No revenue stamps required,” which normally means that consideration was nominal or nonexistent.
6 See supra note 5.
7 Subdivision Plat lot No. 1. The Ursos later convey this lot to Johnson on March 20, 1961 for $1500. The 2001 tax assessment of this land is $187,600 and the structure on it is assessed at $31,900.
8 See supra note 5.
9 Subdivision Plat lot No. 73. Gencarella later conveys this lot to Johnson on September 1, 1960 for $4000. The 2001 tax assessment of this land is $197,300 and the structure on it is assessed at $38,700.
10 See supra note 5.
11 Subdivision Plat lot No. 74. Garafolo later conveys this lot to Henry on November 3, 1971 for $5000. The 2001 tax assessment on this undeveloped land is $200,800 and the structure on it is assessed at $96,400.
12 See supra note 5.
13 Subdivision Plat lots Nos. 15, 16. The 2001 tax assessment on this land is $2600 total.
14 See supra note 5.
15 They decide that Urso will receive Subdivision Plat lots Nos. 3–7, and Palazzolo will receive Subdivision Plat lots Nos. 18–12.
16 Subdivision Plat lots Nos. 3–7.
17 No site plan is available for this application.
18 March 1963 Application/March 1983 Application Map. This map is the same map that the courts confuse as being representative of the May 1963 Application and the March 1983 Application.
19 March 1963 Application/March 1983 Application Map.
20 May 1963 Application Map.
21 See R.I. Gen. Laws � 46-6-1 (1965).
22 Opening Argument of John Webster, Counsel for Plaintiff, Trial Transcript, supra note 2, at 30–31.
23 April 1966 Application/January 1985 Application Map.
24 Complaint at 2, Palazzolo v. Lees, No. 66-3490 (R.I. Super. Ct. 1966).
25 Testimony of Anthony Palazzolo, Plaintiff, Trial Transcript, supra note 2, at 61.
26 R.I. Gen. Laws � 11-46.1-1(4)(f) (1967).
27 At this time Anthony Palazzolo was also listed as SGI’s Corporate Treasurer and Attorney [this is a mistake] at the Secretary of State’s office. The last annual report that SGI had submitted was on April 1, 1963.
28 Subdivision Plat, lots Nos. 3–7.
29 Mr. Palazzolo did know Raymond Surdut. He was doing legal work for Mr. Palazzolo during the 1960s and 1970s, including a takings case concerning compensation for other property belonging to Mr. Palazzolo that was condemned for highway purposes. See generally Palazzolo v. Rahill, 394 A.2d 690 (R.I. 1978).
30 See R.I. Gen. Laws � 46-23-1 to 46-23-24 (1971).
31 March 1963 Application/March 1983 Application Map. In reality, the March 1983 Application is similar to SGI’s March 1963 Application to DHR, not to the March 1962 Application as the court decisions state. This application appears to be the March 1963 Application with the date hand-altered to read “1983.”
32 April 1966 Application/January 1985 Application Map. This application is similar to the April 1966 Application to DHR, except that it requires the filling of 11.4 acres, not 18 acres.
* This section does not require the correction scheme used in the preceding section. It does however identify the separate procedural history of the takings claim and the administrative appeal.
33 Palazzolo v. Coastal Res. Mgmt. Council, No. 86-1496, 1995 WL 941370, at *3–4 (R.I. Super. Ct. Jan. 5, 1995), rev’d, 657 A.2d 1050 (R.I. 1995) [CRMC I].
34 Id. at *1.
35 Palazzolo v. Coastal Res. Mgmt. Council, 657 A.2d 1050, 1050 (R.I. 1995) [CRMC II].
36 Id. at 1051.
37 Id.
38 Id.
39 Id.
40 Id.
41 CRMC II, 657 A.2d at 1051.
42 Id.
43 CRMC I, No. 86-1496, 1995 WL 941370, at *4, *6 (R.I. Super. Ct. Jan. 5, 1995), rev’d, 657 A.2d 1050 (R.I. 1995).
44 CRMC II, 657 A.2d at 1052.
45 Palazzolo v. Coastal Res. Mgmt. Council, No. 88-0297, 1997 WL 1526546, at *5 (R.I. Super. Ct. Oct. 24, 1997), aff’d on other grounds sub nom. Palazzolo v. State ex rel. Tavares, 746 A.2d 707 (R.I. 2000), aff’d in part, rev’d in part, remanded sub nom. Palazzolo v. Rhode Island, 533 U.S. 606 (2001).
46 Id.
47 Id.
48 Tavares, 746 A.2d at 714.
49 Id.
50 Id. at 716.
51 Id. at 716–17.
52 Id. at 717.
53 Id. at 715.
54 Tavares, 746 A.2d 707, cert. granted, 531 U.S. 923 (2000) (mem.).
55 Transcript of Oral Argument, Palazzolo v. Rhode Island, 533 U.S. 606 (2001) (No. 99-2047), 2001 WL 196990 (Feb. 26, 2001).
56 See generally Palazzolo v. Rhode Island, 533 U.S. 606 (2001).
57 See E-mail from Anthony Palazzolo, to David E. Cole (May 1, 2002, 09:35 EST) (on file with editors until September 2003); see also James S. Burling, Private Property Rights and the Environment after Palazzolo, 30 B.C. ENVTL. AFF. L. REV. 1, 22–23 (2002).
58 Palazzolo v. State ex rel. Tavares, 785 A.2d 561, 561 (R.I. 2001) (order remanding the case to the superior court and directing counsel to submit further memoranda).