Case: 1:11-cv-00103-GHD-DAS Doc #: 267 Filed: 10/08/13 1 of 7 PageID #: 3287
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF MISSISSIPPI EASTERN DIVISION KMART CORPORATION, VS.
PLAINTIFF CIV. ACT. NO. 1:11CV103-GHD-DAS
THE KROGER CO., et al
DEFENDANTS
E&A SOUTHEAST LIMITED PARTNERSHIP’S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT
COMES NOW Defendant E&A Southeast Limited Partnership (“E&A”), by and through its undersigned counsel, and files this, its Motion for Summary Judgment, and in support thereof, would show unto the Court the following: 1.
As set forth previously by this Court in its Memorandum Order Granting Kroger’s
Motion to Dismiss, “[i]n May 2010, flash floods hit portions of Arkansas, Kentucky, Tennessee and northern Mississippi, resulting in extensive property damage and several fatalities.” See Memorandum Order Granting Kroger’s Motion to Dismiss, attached hereto as Exhibit 1, page 12. 2.
On May 2, 2011, Kmart Corporation (“Plaintiff”) filed its Complaint against The
City of Corinth, FEMA, The Kroger Company, Kansas City Southern Railway Company, Fulton Improvements, LLC, and E&A, seeking recovery for damages allegedly incurred as a result of May 2010 flooding of Kmart store 4883 located in Corinth, Mississippi. See Complaint, attached hereto as Collective Exhibit 2.
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3.
Kmart Store 4883 and the Kroger store are located in the same shopping center.
E&A owned this shopping center from September 8, 1998 until December 14, 2007. See Exhibit 2, at page 7, ¶ 29. 4.
Kmart alleges that although its Corinth store is located in a floodplain, about one-
half of the adjacent Kroger store is in the floodplain and floodway. See Exhibit 2. 5.
Kmart alleges that the Kroger store was improperly constructed in the regulatory
floodway and was then allowed to remain in the regulatory floodway after FEMA approved the action by issuing a Letter of Map Revision (“LOMR”) in 2005, thirteen years after the Kroger store’s construction. See Exhibit 2 6.
In regards to Defendant E&A, Plaintiff alleges the following: (1) that the Kroger
store was improperly located in a floodway that existed at the time the store was constructed and during E&A’s ownership of the property; (2) that E&A improperly aided and supported the issuance of a LOMAR [sic] for the Kroger store from FEMA in 2005, which allowed the Kroger store to remain in the floodway; (3) that E&A was aware of the LOMAR [sic] and knowingly and improperly allowed its building to remain in the floodway; (4) that the Kroger store’s presence in the floodway caused a displacement of water and a rise in the water level resulting in the flood damage incurred at the neighboring Kmart store; and (5) that Kroger’s location within the floodway also altered the water flow from standing water to a rushing, forceful water flow that resulted in flood damage to the Kmart store.1 See Complaint, Ex. 2, ¶¶ 29-35. 7.
Defendant E&A did not own the shopping center at the time it was built, nor did
E&A own the property at the time of the flooding event. See Complaint, Ex. 2, at page 7, ¶ 29.
1
Plaintiff initially sought damages arising out of a flooding event on April 27, 2011, but Plaintiff subsequently withdrew its allegations stemming from the 2011 flood.
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8.
Kmart has no cause of action against E&A for alleged participation in the
issuance of the LOMR. The cause of action is preempted under the NFIA. See Memorandum Order Granting Kroger’s Motion to Dismiss, Ex. 1, at page 7. Kmart’s allegations challenging the issuance of the LOMR fall squarely within
9.
the ambit of the NFIA. See, e.g., Great Rivers Habitat Alliance v. FEMA, 615 F.3d 985, 987-89 (8th Cir. 20110); Coal. for a Sustainable Delta v. FEMA, 812 F. Supp. 2d 1089, 1102 (E.D. Cal. 2011). Id. Similar to the Court’s finding in granting the City of Corinth’s motion to dismiss,
10.
the record is devoid of any evidence that E&A improperly sought a LOMR that allowed the Kroger store to remain in the floodway. “Thus, this claim is also dismissible on its merits as a conclusory allegation unsupported by the record.” See Memorandum Opinion Granting City of Corinth’s Motion to Dismiss, attached hereto as Collective Exhibit 6, page 22. 11.
Any and all other claims alleged by Plaintiff against Defendant E&A are barred
by the three year statute of limitations pursuant to Miss. Code Ann. § 15-1-49 (1995). 12.
No exception is availing to the Plaintiff to toll the statute of limitations.
13.
Plaintiff cannot show that the Kroger store was actually constructed within the
floodway. Deposition of Plaintiff’s Expert John Krewson, attached hereto as Collective Exhibit 9, at 241:19-25; 242:1-2. Plaintiff cannot show that the Kroger store’s presence in the floodway caused a
14.
displacement of water and a rise in the water level, resulting in the flood damage incurred at the neighboring Store 4883 on May 10, 2010. 15.
The proximate cause of the May 2010 flooding was an “Act of God” and was thus
unforeseeable.
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16.
The flood that occurred in Corinth in May 2010 surpassed one hundred year flood
ranges. See Monohan report, Ex. 13 at 1. 17.
In support of its Motion, E&A relies upon the pleadings filed in this action, its
supporting memorandum, and the following exhibits: a. Exhibit 1: Memorandum Order Granting Kroger’s Motion to Dismiss b. Exhibit 2: Complaint c. Exhibit 3: Deposition of E&A d. Exhibit 4: Letter of Map Revision – Floodway (“LOMR”) e. Exhibit 5: Kmart Lease Agreement f. Exhibit 6: Memorandum Opinion Granting City of Corinth’s MTD g. Exhibit 7: Deposition of Kmart – Dale Menendez h. Exhibit 8: Elevation Certificate i. Exhibit 9: Deposition of John Krewson j. Exhibit 10:Report of Eley k. Exhibit 11:Certificates of Occupancy l. Exhibit 12:Community Acknowledgement Form m. Exhibit 13:Monohan Report n. Exhibit 14:REMA revalidation letter o. Exhibit 15:Order Denying Motion p. Exhibit 16:Kmart Documents WHEREFORE, Defendant E&A respectfully requests that this Court enter summary judgment in favor of E&A and against Plaintiffs, as well as any Cross-Plaintiffs and Third-Party Plaintiffs in the above referenced case.
Case: 1:11-cv-00103-GHD-DAS Doc #: 267 Filed: 10/08/13 5 of 7 PageID #: 3291
Date: October 8, 2013
Respectfully submitted,
E&A SOUTHEAST LIMITED PARTNERSHIP BY: /s/ Mary Clift Abdalla MARY CLIFT ABDALLA (Miss. Bar No. 102734) WALTER GARNER WATKINS, III (Miss. Bar No. 100314) WALTER GARNER WATKINS, JR. (Miss. Bar No. 6988) Forman Perry Watkins Krutz & Tardy LLP 200 South Lamar Street, Suite 100 Jackson, MS 39201 Telephone: (601) 973-5967
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I, the undersigned Mary Clift Abdalla, one of the attorneys for E & A, hereby certify that I have this day served electronically using the ECF system, a true and correct copy of the foregoing document to the following:
Ryan O. Lumainis James M. Garner John T. Balhoff, II SHER GARNER CAHILL RICHTER KLEIN & HILBERT, LLC 909 Poydras Street, 28th Floor New Orleans, LA 70112 Email: rluminais@shergarner.com Edley H. Jones III David A. Norris Stephen F. Schelver McGLINCHEY STAFFORD, PLLC City Center South, Suite 1100 200 South Lamar Street (Zip - 39201) Post Office Drawer 22949 Jackson, Mississippi 39225-2949
Case: 1:11-cv-00103-GHD-DAS Doc #: 267 Filed: 10/08/13 6 of 7 PageID #: 3292
Telephone: (769) 524-2300 Facsimile: (769) 524-2333 Email: ejones@mcglinchey.com; dnorris@mcglinchey.com sschelver@mcglinchey.com Gerald Haggart Jacks JACKS, ADAMS & NORQUIST, P.A. P. O. Box 1209 Cleveland, MS 38732-1209 Email: gjacks@jacksadamsnorquist.com Jamie Ferguson Jacks JACKS, ADAMS & NORQUIST, P.A. P. O. Box 1209 Cleveland, MS 38732-1209 Email: jjacks@jacksadamsnorquist.com Charles E. Ross WISE, CARTER, CHILD & CARAWAY P. O. Box 651 Jackson, MS 39205-0651 Email: cer@wisecarter.com Terry Dwayne Little DANIEL, COKER, HORTON & BELL - Oxford P.O. Box 1396 Oxford, MS 38655 Email: tlittle@danielcoker.com Wilton V. Byars , III DANIEL, COKER, HORTON & BELL P.O. Box 1396 Oxford, MS 38655 Email: wbyars@danielcoker.com Linda F. Cooper WISE CARTER CHILD & CARAWAY, P.A. P.O. Box 651 Jackson, MS 39205-0651
THIS, the 8th day of October 2013. /s/ Mary Clift Abdalla Mary Clift Abdalla
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