Post by Xanth on Dec 7, 2005 15:00:28 GMT -5
I heard that congress passed a less than spectacular bill to make it harder for local and state governements to seize private propert to turn back over to the private sector. I found some info about Knoxville on Castle Coalition. www.castlecoalition.org/
I feel Congress should pass some clear and concise laws protecting land.
Copied from Castle Coalition.
Overview
Tennessee cities seem willing to use eminent domain for the benefit of private parties. Both Knoxville and Memphis have threatened owners with eminent domain in order to get them to sell their land “voluntarily” for private redevelopment projects. Both cities have created redevelopment plans that call for large-scale private development on other people’s property, and Knoxville has condemned at least three properties to transfer them to private developers. While the cities have mostly acquired land only with threats, the willingness of Tennessee cities to bully owners into selling does not bode well for the future. On the other hand, a case arising in Tennessee opened the door for some potential condemnees to challenge the public purpose of the condemnation in federal court.
Private Use Condemnations
Carter County
The Nave family has owned a home in rural Carter County for over 150 years. Many years ago, the Naves built a 1/10-mile private driveway connecting a nearby public thoroughfare and their garage. The driveway was private, but in 1995, the County designated it as a public road. Even after the mistake was revealed, the County continued to designate the road as public at the request of the Naves’ neighbors, who wanted to use the driveway. The Naves filed suit in federal court, alleging that the proposed taking was unconstitutional because it would benefit a private party, while serving only a superficial public purpose. The federal trial court dismissed the Nave claims as unripe, holding that at the time the family filed the case, no actual taking for private use had taken place. In September 2000, however, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit reversed the lower court’s decision and allowed the Naves an opportunity to prove their case.626
Knoxville
Pursuant to its 1998 Historic Market Square plan, the City of Knoxville is undergoing a downtown redevelopment that will eventually create a “shoppertainment” district featuring retail shops, restaurants and residences. City officials hope to avoid using eminent domain to condemn properties, wherever possible, by allowing current property owners to retain ownership of their buildings as long as the buildings comply with the plan.627 Owners will then be encouraged to lease their ground floors to Market Square Development LLC (MSD), which will manage the premises and attempt to attract regional or national chain stores to the redeveloped area. If the buildings do not comply with the plan, they will then be condemned. In total, there are 36 privately-owned properties in the Market Square area that would be subject to the redevelopment plan.628
Knoxville
In September 2002, the Knoxville Community Development Corp. (KCDC) condemned three properties for the Stephens Square retail redevelopment. Before KCDC took his land, Alfred Nance had planned to build a youth center on his property and had already obtained the building permits. KCDC also condemned a property that Lonzo Stephens had previously leased to several small businesses. The owners of those businesses are the very ones partnering with KCDC on the Stephens Square project. With the City’s help, they managed to swipe the property from their former landlord, who loses not only the property itself but also the income he derived from his tenants.629
I feel Congress should pass some clear and concise laws protecting land.
Copied from Castle Coalition.
Overview
Tennessee cities seem willing to use eminent domain for the benefit of private parties. Both Knoxville and Memphis have threatened owners with eminent domain in order to get them to sell their land “voluntarily” for private redevelopment projects. Both cities have created redevelopment plans that call for large-scale private development on other people’s property, and Knoxville has condemned at least three properties to transfer them to private developers. While the cities have mostly acquired land only with threats, the willingness of Tennessee cities to bully owners into selling does not bode well for the future. On the other hand, a case arising in Tennessee opened the door for some potential condemnees to challenge the public purpose of the condemnation in federal court.
Private Use Condemnations
Carter County
The Nave family has owned a home in rural Carter County for over 150 years. Many years ago, the Naves built a 1/10-mile private driveway connecting a nearby public thoroughfare and their garage. The driveway was private, but in 1995, the County designated it as a public road. Even after the mistake was revealed, the County continued to designate the road as public at the request of the Naves’ neighbors, who wanted to use the driveway. The Naves filed suit in federal court, alleging that the proposed taking was unconstitutional because it would benefit a private party, while serving only a superficial public purpose. The federal trial court dismissed the Nave claims as unripe, holding that at the time the family filed the case, no actual taking for private use had taken place. In September 2000, however, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit reversed the lower court’s decision and allowed the Naves an opportunity to prove their case.626
Knoxville
Pursuant to its 1998 Historic Market Square plan, the City of Knoxville is undergoing a downtown redevelopment that will eventually create a “shoppertainment” district featuring retail shops, restaurants and residences. City officials hope to avoid using eminent domain to condemn properties, wherever possible, by allowing current property owners to retain ownership of their buildings as long as the buildings comply with the plan.627 Owners will then be encouraged to lease their ground floors to Market Square Development LLC (MSD), which will manage the premises and attempt to attract regional or national chain stores to the redeveloped area. If the buildings do not comply with the plan, they will then be condemned. In total, there are 36 privately-owned properties in the Market Square area that would be subject to the redevelopment plan.628
Knoxville
In September 2002, the Knoxville Community Development Corp. (KCDC) condemned three properties for the Stephens Square retail redevelopment. Before KCDC took his land, Alfred Nance had planned to build a youth center on his property and had already obtained the building permits. KCDC also condemned a property that Lonzo Stephens had previously leased to several small businesses. The owners of those businesses are the very ones partnering with KCDC on the Stephens Square project. With the City’s help, they managed to swipe the property from their former landlord, who loses not only the property itself but also the income he derived from his tenants.629
