Hess Triangle. How Eminent Domain Battle Created NYC's Smallest Piece of Property. Hint: Check Your Property Surveys Before you Condemn.

What’s Hess Triangle? A triangular piece of property that is 25.5 inches by 27.5 inches by 27.5 inches. 

What? How can this two foot triangle exist as private property in NYC? Go to corner of Seventh Avenue and Christopher Street and you’ll see it

How did this small piece of property emerge from an eminent domain fight? In 1910, NYC was extending the Seventh Avenue Subway Line. A property owner named Hess owned a 5 story building in the path of the new subway extension.

What did the landowner do in 1910 to fight eminent domain? He went to court. Fought a 4 year legal battle. But, the city won its right to use eminent domain on a bad property survey. 

The 2 foot triangle was left out of the survey and remained Hess’s private property. The city asked the family to donate the triangle… The family refused. 

The Gothamist | The Story Behind Hess Triangle, Once The Littlest Piece Of Land In NYC

4 Takeaways from an Activist Private Property Rights Group

Where is the private property rights group forming? Mt. Airy North Carolina

What type of project sparked the group’s formation? A local redevelopment plan

What’s the group’s goal? To remove private property from the local redevelopment plan

Why? The local government’s plan to redevelop land that it holds, expanded to include private property of a former city council candidate

What concerns about eminent domain does the group have?

  • That the use of eminent domain will result in business property being labeled blighted
  • That the use of eminent domain will reduce the value of their property
  • redevelopment is economic development, the goal is to increase that property’s value
  • private property owners have the right to do whatever they want with their property, and to be free of eminent domain

Mount Airy News | Group forms to fight eminent domain

4 Reasons Midwestern Elected Officials Oppose Eminent Domain for Transmission Lines. Localizing Public Benefit.

State Rep. Grassley, grandson to US Senator Grassley, has 2 points to make to a clean energy line that wants to use eminent domain in Iowa:

  • The Iowa Utilities Board has told you 2 times that eminent domain cannot be separated from your permit application
  • If you don’t allow Iowans to plug in, you’re not a utility & therefore don’t deserve eminent domain powers
  • Missouri also denied your transmission line request (our numbers are growing)
  • We’re also watching your attempt to end run the state with legislation in the US Senate, that place where my grandfather serves

Cedar Rapids Gazette | Protect landowners from the Rock Island Clean Line

Des Moines Register | An open letter to Rock Island Clean Line from lawmakers

Eminent Domain Trends in Presidential Election: Trump Loves Justice Thomas. Thomas Doesn't Love Kelo. Trump Longingly Loves Kelo.

In South Carolina Trump shared his opinion of Supreme Court Justices. In short:

  • Roberts, not so much love
  • Thomas,  lots of love

Reason took the opportunity to point a slew of inconsistencies:

  • Thomas wrote a strong dissent to the controversial, and much maligned, Kelo decision
    • Tomas wrote, “It [the majority opinion] encourages ‘those citizens with disproportionate influence and power in the political process, including large corporations and development.”
      firms’ to victimize the weak.”
  • Trump goes on and on about his love of Kelo
  • Reason says Trump abuses eminent domain

Reason | Donald Trump vs. Clarence Thomas

INTERIM Civil Asset Forfeiture Yields $1M per year for 1 City. How 1 City Lost its Revenue & Ignored Reform Laws.

Civil Asset Forfeiture generates more than $1 million in revenue per year for The City of Albuquerque.

Is this $1 Million tied to convicted criminals? No. There were no criminal convictions for any of the affected property owners.

What does Albuquerque use the funding for? It pays the salaries of the people seizing the property. 

How did the program in Albuquerque go awry? A city attorney publicly referred to asset forefeiture as a ““gold mine” and property seized through civil forfeiture as “little goodies.”

The legislature passed a bill to restrain civil asset forfeiture, but it is not being enforced. What happens next? A bipartisan group of State Senators joined with the Institute of Justice to force enforcement through New Mexico’s court system.

Institute for Justice 

Lege Trend: Constitutional Right to Attorney Fees in Eminent Domain

A state constitution guarantees attorney fees in eminent domain? Yes, the Florida constitution does.

What’s the goal behind this provision? A landowner should not be placed in a worse position after eminent domain

Can this provision go awry? Some Florida attorneys believe so.

What loophole exists for constitutional protection for attorney fees in eminent domain proceedings? When a condemning entity does not play fair and forces needless and endless litigation. The Florida courts deemed a condemning entity’s tactics to include excessive litigation. Even with this ruling favoring land owners, the court  did not allow for attorney fees to combat the improper litigation. 

The Florida Eminent Domain Blog | Florida’s Supreme Court Levels the Playing Field.

Doerr v. Central Florida Expressway Authority

Lexology| Eminent Domain and Attorneys’ Fees: The Case for Excessive Litigation

What Happens when the Feds & a State Join Forces to Condemn City Owned Property

The Feds are using eminent domain? Where? The EPA supports  condemning  87 pieces of city owned property in Margate, New Jersey as part of Governor Christi’s Dune Protection Plan.

Any fireworks from Governor Christi? Yes, he called the city “selfish” for opposing his state beach protection plan

How do the Feds tie into this? Funding for the beach protection is coming from the $3.5 billion Hurricane Sandy aid bill

Philly.com | Margate, state argue over dune plan in court

Private Property Rights. Trend: Water Agencies Compel Owners to Fix Pipes. 1 Local Gov. Solution. 1 Statewide Legislative Solution.

Utilities are targeting  private property owners pipes to:

  • repair old and leaky  pipes
  • to prevent  big problems like sinkholes and overflows of sewage into waterways
    • which leads to water plants treating more water than necessary, and driving up costs for ratepayers

Why are utilities targeting the pipes that are out of their control?

  • water utilities are struggling to reduce costs
  • utilities are having a hard time complying with federal clean water mandates

What programs have emerged around the country?

  • Cincinnati partially funds repairs for the costs of repairs to pipes under city streets
    • the repairs are mandatory when the property sells or is significantly remodeled
    • At sale or remodel, mandatory pipe testing is required for lateral pipes
  • Pittsburg is pushing PA’s legislature to pass a bill to allow a water utility to fix leaky pipes that the utility doesn’t own & recoup the cost from the property owner

Governing | Water Utilities Target Private, Leaky Pipes

INTERIM Private property Rights. Civil Asset Forfeiture. 100 Editorials. Texas Legislative Reference Library.

What’s happening? The Texas Legislative Reference Library circulated Civil Asset Reform Information.

What group is putting out the civil asset reform information? Institute for Justice.

What’s the information say? over 100 editorials nation wide are calling for civil asset forfeiture reform.

Why does this matter? Interim Charges call for reviewing civil asset laws. TPPF has been calling for civil asset reform for a couple years.

Why is this a Texas issue? Local governmental entities utilize property seized through forefeiture for funding. Property Rights advocates say that some of this property is taken before conviction leaving innocent people with no property rights.

Institute for Justice | Over 100 Editorials Call for Civil Forefeiture Reform

 

Art as a Means to Stop Eminent Domain by Pipelines

Art to stop eminent domain, who came up with that? eco-artist Aviva Rahmani’s Blued Trees

What’s the goal of using art to stop eminent domain?  To prevent private corporations from gaining eminent domain for natural gas pipelines on private property

How will art stop eminent domain? 1990 Visual Artists Rights Acts (VARA) may provide extra protection to landowners

Cornell Daily Sun | Aviva Rahmani’s Blued Trees & the Fight Against Pipelines