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Legislative Process Keyed to Bressman, 4th Ed.
Citizens to Preserve Overton Park, Inc. v. Volpe
Citation:
401 U.S. 402, 91 S. Ct. 814, 28 L. Ed. 2d 136 (1971)Facts
Overton Park is a 342-acre city park in Memphis, Tennessee, containing a zoo, golf course, outdoor theater, nature trails, and 170 acres of forest. The Department of Transportation approved a plan to build a six-lane interstate highway (I-40) through the park, which would destroy 26 acres of parkland. The route through the park was initially approved in 1956 and reaffirmed in 1966, but the enactment of § 4(f) of the Department of Transportation Act in 1966 and § 138 of the Federal-Aid Highway Act in 1968 imposed new restrictions on the use of parkland for highways. The Secretary approved the route in 1968 and the design in 1969 without formal findings explaining why there were no feasible and prudent alternatives or why the chosen design minimized harm to the park. Citizens to Preserve Overton Park and other conservation organizations challenged this approval, arguing that the Secretary had not made the required determinations and had simply deferred to local officials.
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