Alabama Supreme Court considers whether missed mailed notice invalidates Birmingham subdivision plat

The Supreme Court of Alabama on the record considered an appeal by 790 Montclair LLC seeking to invalidate a City of Birmingham planning commission subdivision plat approved in November 2020 on the ground that the commission failed to mail statutorily required notice to 790 Montclair as an adjoining landowner.

Diane Maughn, counsel for the appellant 790 Montclair LLC, told the court that under this court’s precedent the approval must be invalidated for failure to provide the required mailed notice. “Following this court’s precedent, the answer to that question is undeniably yes. And the approval of the subdivision plat is due to be invalidated,” Maughn said.

The dispute centers on whether the statutory and local regulatory notice requirements require strict compliance even if the adjoining owner suffered no demonstrable prejudice, and on what remedy follows. Maughn argued the court’s decision in Kennon and Associates v. Gentry requires invalidation where procedural notice provisions were not…