Opinion
March 27, 1995
Appeal from the Supreme Court, Westchester County (Gurahian, J.).
Ordered that the order is affirmed, with costs.
As a general rule, municipalities are not liable for the breach of a duty unless a special relationship exists between the municipality and the plaintiff (see, Moch Co. v. Rensselaer Water Co., 247 N.Y. 160; Oakridge Realty Corp. v. Jericho Water Dist., 150 A.D.2d 660). As a result, liability depends upon the existence of "some relationship * * * creating a duty to use due care for the benefit of particular persons or classes of persons," such as where there exists a statutory command in favor of a special class (Motyka v. City of Amsterdam, 15 N.Y.2d 134, 139). Absent such a showing, "the proper allocation of public resources * * * is a matter for the executive and legislative branches to decide" (De Long v. County of Erie, 60 N.Y.2d 296, 305).
Here, there has been no showing of a special relationship between the municipality and the plaintiff warranting the imposition of a duty to use reasonable care for her special benefit (see, Garrett v. Holiday Inns, 58 N.Y.2d 253). Thompson, J.P., Lawrence, Hart and Goldstein, JJ., concur.