Seizing Riviera Beach for the rich...Florida's eminent domain tragedy.

[madfloridian]

"For all those who don't like it, tough."



WILFREDO LEE/ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTOS
Michael Brown, mayor of Riviera Beach, looks this week at a condominium going up along the waterfront.

Florida Project Could Be Among Largest Property Seizures in U.S.

When Mayor Michael Brown envisions the future of this struggling city, he sees no poverty, no drug dealing, no prostitution -- and none of the 1,700 buildings where many of his poorest constituents live and work.

As many as 6,000 of Riviera Beach's 31,000 residents would be sent packing in the city's effort to revamp its marina district with condominiums, houses, shops, offices and yacht slips. To enraged owners of property slated for condemnation, Brown says the sacrifice is necessary for progress. "(Italian philosopher Niccolo) Machiavelli said it best -- the hardest thing to do is to sustain and change the order of things," Brown says. "I will use every ounce of energy I have to fight to make a better life for these people. There will be no more lower class.

"For all those who don't like it, tough."

The project, potentially one of the country's largest eminent domain seizures, has placed Riviera Beach at the center of a nationwide battle over whether government should be allowed to seize property for private development.

But some differ with Mayor Brown.

"You can't just take away from people what they've worked so hard for," says Princess Wells, 54, whose home and salon are slated for removal under the $2.4 billion plan.

Princess Wells, who owns a salon and a home in Riviera Beach, decries the city’s use of eminent domain to force her to make way for private development

There is a lot of this going on in Florida. Our own city is filing eminent domain proceeding against homeowners in the downtown area so high rise condos can be built.

[shance]

1. Something new. Jeb Bush is using a black man instead of a woman to

do his dirty work.

[Freddie Stubbs]

17. Mayor Brown is actually a Democrat

Although city officials are elected in nonpartisan elections.

[madfloridian]

19. Florida Democrats are a different breed. They have attitudes...

many of them have very bad attitudes.

[niyad]

2. if they are going to put condos on the beach,shouldn't there actually BE

a beach there? do those buildings go righ to the water line?

[madfloridian]

3. I noticed that. No beach, just pier.

I guess if the rich can see the water, it is waterfront. This just infuriates me.

[anitar1]

4. Isn't hurricane season coming ?n/t

[madfloridian]

5. Just another high rise waiting for another Charlie or Frances.

Sometimes the idiocy of all this just hits me so hard.

[niyad]

8. 30 days to hurricane season.

[donsu]

22. same thing I thought when I saw the pic. and I laughed

just more traffic at evacuation time.

and nowadays you can't always trust a dem. in Fl. it's best to check and double check and move with caution. Fl. has become a bit like Afghanistan. tribal and territorial.

[Canuckistanian]

14. Do these developers not need engineering reports?

You know, those pesky little documents that say whether it's safe to build a structure in a particular location?

[madfloridian]

15. A lot of regulations have been done away with quietly in Florida.

Pesky environmental stuff and all that. I am not sure about your question, but I do know that in our area developers do whatever they want and have for years. One built a subdivision in a dry lake bed, then when the lake came back...surprise, surprise. I don't think he was held accountable for that.

[Lars39]

6. I think there's going to come a time when these politician's

are going to have a hard time getting out of their gated play-pens.

[madfloridian]

7. Riviera Beach after Frances hit.

I think some high-rises got hit pretty bad also. Some day we have to quit this madness of building right on the water like that.

[Dr.Phool]

9. They're doing it EVERYWHERE in Florida.

Drive down Gulf Blvd. through Treasure Island, Clearwater Beach, Johns Pass, Madiera Beach. They're tearing down all the old hotels and motels along the ocean front, and building expensive high-rise condos.

[madfloridian]

10. Not just coastal areas.

They are doing it in downtown areas. They got developers and their friends in places of power and they are now going for the goal.

They dismantled Cypress Gardens, sold part of it off, and then redid it with less property. All the while they pretended they were doing good things.

[ms liberty]

13. Yea, I remember when Sand Key was nothing but sand...

until they finally built something on it. I forget exactly when they built on it, but I had some good times there as a teenager.

I always said I'd love to live on the beach, but it would be inviting disaster. If you live in hurricane territory, you (should!!) know better than to spit into the wind!

[CoffeeCat]

11. This story is very upsetting...

This isn't my America. My America isn't a place where a woman--who has worked hard all of her life--is forced to lose her home and business to the government.

When our government can kick people out of their own homes and businesses--to accommodate people with more money and businesses with more power--then we are seeing very unAmerican actions in play.

It's not enough to be a successful business owner in this country anymore. You are pond scum to this administration if you aren't a steamroller tycoon type with billions to throw around.

If you don't eat beluga for breakfast--then you deserve nothing!

[madfloridian]

12. It's disturbing.

They are doing this in our city, and the people doing it seem so heartless. One of the city planners who used to be real person sounded arrogant when quoted.

They have their agenda.

[Solon]

16. "No more lower class" and a fucking Machiavelli quote?!?!?!

Is this guy the definition of an asshole or what? Seriously, I guess the best way to not have a lower class is to get rid of them entirely, and import them into the city instead. What a fucking assholic selfish bastard. :grr:

[AX10]

18. Florida is a cestpool.

I'm not suprised to hear that this tragedy has happened.

[madfloridian]

20. Florida may pass law giving that power only for roads, sidewalks, pipes.

I am not real sure how much better this would be. If they have the power to build roads by using eminent domain specifically, this could hurt a lot of historical areas. I live in a designated historical neighborhood, and I believe this could bypass that right.

I was doing genealogical research and found that many old famous homes could be gutted or torn down if the right of eminent domain is given to roadbuilders. I need to find that site again.

I am not sure this is an improvement.

http://www.tallahassee.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060425/CAPITOLNEWS/604250316/1010/NEWS01

"Lawmakers look at limiting power to seize property
By Aaron Deslatte
CAPITOL BUREAU

Spurred by a June 2005 U.S. Supreme Court decision, lawmakers are moving toward passing a law that bars community redevelopment agencies, cities and counties from using eminent domain power to seize slums and blighted areas for economic development.

Instead, local governments would be allowed to use the condemnation power only to build roads or sidewalks or to lay wire or pipe for utilities.

It's a hard-line stand, but it's a good stand," said Sen. Daniel Webster, R-Winter Haven."

In fact, doesn't this rule already exist for building roads? I think so.

[madfloridian]

21. This is good, maybe...FL Senate places new law, not exempting Riviera.

Fingers crossed on this.

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/politics/content/local_news/epaper/2006/05/03/c1b_xgr_domain_0503.html

Senate move may kill Riviera redevelopment
By Alan Gomez, Kevin Deutsch

Palm Beach Post Staff Writers

Wednesday, May 03, 2006

TALLAHASSEE — "The legislature may have dealt a fatal blow to Riviera Beach's $2.6 billion redevelopment plan when the Senate refused to exempt the plan from a bill that would restrict eminent domain powers in Florida.

Immediately following the decision, a lobbyist for the city's likely master developer said it might pull out of the project because of the massive increase in costs it will face without the power of eminent domain.

Robert Healy, chairman of Viking Inlet Harbor, has not yet signed a contract with the city to become its master developer. But he has traveled to Tallahassee frequently in recent months to warn legislators that a lack of eminent domain powers would allow speculators to swoop in, purchase properties and force his company to pay exorbitant amounts for them.

Healy was traveling Tuesday, but a Viking lobbyist said he already has discussed backing out of the project if the legislature did exactly what it did Tuesday."

Fingers crossed. Mayor Brown seems determined to pursue it, though, saying the Senate doesn't care about poor people. I am still trying to figure that one out.

[madfloridian]

23. Bill on Jeb's desk now with no exemption for Riviera Beach.

The mayor is furious, and other places like Boynton Beach are considering legal options to pursue it further.

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/palmbeach/sfl-pfeminent05may05,0,2687301.story?coll=sfla-news-palm

TALLAHASSEE · "Legislation limiting the ability of local governments to condemn homes and other property for private redevelopment received final approval from Florida legislators Thursday after they refused to make an exception for a massive renewal project in Riviera Beach.

The House and Senate put a proposed state constitutional amendment (HJR 1569) on the Nov. 7 ballot and sent a bill (HB 1567) to Gov. Jeb Bush, who has said he opposes all taking of people's property for private use.

Thursday's legislative approval sparked immediate concern in Boynton Beach and Delray Beach.

Boynton Beach has been using the eminent domain threat to assemble more than 30 properties for its Heart of Boynton redevelopment project along Martin Luther King Jr. and Seacrest boulevards."