U.S. Supreme Court Declines to Hear Brinkmann's Appeal of Southold Case

The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to hear the Brinkmann’s Hardware store’s appeal that sought to overturn a Town of Southold decision that blocked the company from opening a Mattituck location.

Lawyers for the family that runs the chain store petitioned the nation’s top court after a panel of judges at the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan affirmed a lower court ruling that rejected the store’s lawsuit seeking to overturn the town’s decision to seize the store’s two-acre vacant lot to preserve it as open space. The plaintiffs argue that the town abused its use of eminent domain to block them from building a 12,000-square-foot store.

“The proposed store faced strong public opposition due to its location in a congested area of downtown Mattituck which comprised the last remaining green space in the area,” said Southold Town Supervisor Al Krupski, who cheered the decision. “This lawsuit is now over and Southold’s right to determine the fate of its community has been upheld.”

Brinkmann’s, which is represented by the Manhattan-based law firm of Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP, reportedly purchased the lot for $700,000 in 2016 and the town later enacted a construction moratorium in the area. The hardware chain said in court documents that Southold’s plans for building a park were “a sham.”

“The court’s decision is a disappointment, but our decision to bring this case to court was still the right thing to do,” said Ben and Hank Brinkmann. “Government shouldn’t be able to get away with these abuses of power.”

The plaintiffs continue to question whether the town used eminent domain for a true public use.

“Every petition to the Supreme Court is a long shot because the court only takes a few dozen cases each year, out of thousands of petitions,” said Institute for Justice Senior Attorney Jeff Redfern. “We will continue to represent property owners … whenever they are threatened by eminent domain abuse.”