Fairchild v. Raines

I concur in the judgment. In my opinion the findings of the trial court fail not only to provide an adequate basis for determining whether enforcement of the restriction in the light of changed conditions would impose great hardship upon the defendants with little or no benefit to the plaintiffs (Trustees of Columbia College v. Thacher, 87 N.Y. 311, 317 [41 Am.Rep. 365, 367]), but to consider whether enforcement would be contrary to the public interest in the use of land in urban communities where people are concentrated in limited areas.

The public policy against restricting the free use of…