Rising up to nullify eminent domain ruling (with 'just desserts' for USSC

[Vitruvius]

by Kenneth Harney

<SNIP> In the four weeks since the Supreme Court sanctioned the seizure of private homes by municipal governments for private "economic development," a firestorm of reaction has broken out in dozens of state legislatures and in Congress. <SNIP> Name another issue where House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Texas), Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.), the House's lone self-described socialist, Rep. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), evangelical Christian groups, Rush Limbaugh and Ralph Nader all are on the same side.

Waters denounced the decision - which she said would weigh most heavily on minority and poor neighborhoods - as "the most un-American thing that can be done." DeLay called the ruling "a travesty." A few of the opponents of the Kelo decision are looking to mount direct action - sometimes tongue in cheek. A California-based group called Freestar Media Llc is organizing an effort to persuade the town council of Weare, N.H., where Supreme Court Justice David H. Souter owns property, to condemn the land in order to give it to developers who promise to construct a hotel on the site, substantially raising town revenues and employment in the process.

Souter voted with the majority in the case. The name of the proposed project: The Lost Liberty Hotel, which will also feature a restaurant called the Just Desserts Cafe.

Logan Darrow Clements, chief executive of Freestar, insists "this is not a prank. The Town of Weare has five people on the Board of Selectmen. If three of them vote to use the power of eminent domain to take this land from Mr. Souter, we can begin our hotel development."

Just desserts indeed. :evilgrin:

MORE at http://www.newsday.com/business/realestate/ny-bzharney4351374jul22,0,1945634.story

[JDPriestly]

1. No one minded when the government took the

homes and businesses of poor people claiming they were "blight." That has been going on for a long, long time -- community redevelopment. You get "just compensation," whatever that means. The right way to get rid of "blight" is to empower the people who already own the properties to improve their properties or live in the area through grants (how about "incentives" that would require the private foundations that fund the right-wing movement to give some of their money to get rid of urban blight?) and loans.

[Vitruvius]

3. So true. And the rich and well-connected are so arrogant

they don't know when to stop -- and they're going after working class and middle class homes & businesses. Angering enough people with the power to fight back. Hopefully, the result will end up giving us protections that will help ALL people.

The larger lesson for all Americans is: anything they can do to poor people today, they can and will do to any and all of us tomorrow.

[Coastie for Truth]

4. Pennsylvania's "Instant Millionaire" Eminent Domain Law

was passed by an NAACP organizer (Frankie Mae Jetter), a liberal community organizer (Martie Krauss) and an ACLU pro bono lawyer (Ed Mannino) - passed by a hard line leftie Governor (Milt Shapp - the gazillionaire inventor of cable tv) and really given muscle for the poor by a leftie Supreme Court Justice (Nick Papadakos).

Since it has been passed and implemented - there hasn't been much private eminent domain action in Pittsburgh (cheaper to privately negotiate a deal with a "recalcitrant property owner" then to risk eminent domain and a much higher award - and that's the idea).

[Coastie for Truth]

2. You don't see this uprising in Pennsylvania

because Pennsylvania has "Instant Millionaire" eminent domain-- even after the local "Board of Viewers" get their kick back and skim, and your local political parasites get theirs -- the homeowner comes out with well over 300% of what would be the "fair market value" in most other states. It's a formula called "comparable home in a comparable community" -- and was rushed through the legislature to build I-95 through Philadelphia and I-279 through Pittsburgh.

When the State took farmland in Fayette County (South west of Pittsburgh on the WV border) to build I-70, the farmland was assessed at its value for highway interchange commercial development + plus a further sweetener.

The formula is so generous that it discourages eminent domain for private (non-governmental) projects.

(Heck - before Pete killed Skybus - we were hoping Skybus East would have gone past our house --- instant millionaires - could have bought in Upper Saint Claire or Mt. Lebanon :) with the rich folks).