InfoHive – Eminent Domain – Page 226

Be Kind; Rewind: Ft. Worth Star Telegram Runs- It’s Time for Real Eminent Domain Reform

The former mayor of Dish, Texas, tells us eminent domain Reform #1 is no more eminent domain for private companies. Texas private property rights are ranked very low nationally. Texas should look to Florida, where real eminent domain reforms have been enacted. Condemning entities pay legal bills whenever a land owner challenges eminent domain.[Star Telegram]

P.S. The former mayor of Dish’s editorial first apepared on TribTalk.

Mean Green UNT: Go Eminent Domain!

Mean Green is an unfortunate motto when UNT is moving toward eminent domain. Headlines to come- Mean Green Won’t Give Land Owner the Green. Mean Green is Mean to Land Owner. UNT Regents voted to acquire land a Sack ’N Save sits on to build a UNT community services center. The Sack ’N Save has good freeway access. UNT wants good freeway access too. [NBC FW]

Surfers Blocked from Beach. Eminent Domain on the Horizon.

The California legislature sought to find middle ground over public beach access through a California billionaire’s property. The courts sided with the surfer’s right to beach access. The legislature sought the more peaceful resolution for the billionaire- negotiation. Governor Brown agreed and signed the bill. But if negotiation fails, eminent domain is back on the table. A billionaire wants to keep his beach private. Surfers want to surf.

Never ending circle between the courts and the legislature over private property rights. Happens in California. Happens in Texas. Private Property rights will always be a bone of contention. [San Francisco Chronicle]

Blight Fight. Do Co-Development Agreements Work?

Remedying blight is controversial. Unwilling sellers don’t want to part with their property. Some clever unwilling sellers want a co-development agreement in lieu of eminent domain. Long range profits are a trend in eminent domain compensation, and in some instances can mean less upfront funds are required to purchase land. [Muskogee Phoenix]

What happens when pipelines need to be replaced? New eminent domain issues emerge.

Pipelines age. Botox for pipelines is called replacement. When replacement means re-routing the pipeline, land owners sue. A federal district court in Pennsylvania granted summary judgment for the land owners finding that replacement requires that the pipeline use the same footprint. The Third Circuit issued a deeply split opinion that will forecast many future suits throughout the country as pipelines are replaced. The split opinion generously defines replacement. The pipeline isn’t required to be in the same spot. A quarter of a mile to a mile away is good enough for the Third Circuit. That’s some leeway. [The Legal Intelligencer] [Columbia Gas Transmission v. York County]

Billionaire Blocks Surfers from Beach

Surfers are the nemesis of one California Billionaire, who watched Point Break too many times. In an effort to protect his beach from Presidential-mask wearing, bank robbing surfers, our billionaire blocked access to his beach. California Courts said no way, no how, dude. Surfers must have access to the surf, dude. [WSJ]

RRC Rule Making: The Public Speaks

Hundreds of comments have been received from individuals and entities. Most interestingly, John Adams has shared his two cents on the proposed RRC rule. Who better than a Founding Father and an advisor to the US Constitutional Convention to weigh in on the issue of property rights. [RRC Public Comments]

Eminent Domain + Tollroad =Angry Dallas Crowd

A few weeks ago a fire marshall shut down this crowd because the crowd was too big. Time passed. A new venue was located. Time does not heal all wounds. For this crowd, time stoked the flames of anger. The crowd yelled names at officials & offered near unanimous opposition to eminent domain and toll roads. [Dallas Morning News]

A View from West Texas

Preserving farmland is high on the minds of West Texans. The Brazos River Bottom Alliance says Texas leads the nation in disappearing farm land. Texas without farm land is like Texas without cowboys, a seeming impossibility. [Odessa American]

Private Companies Exercising Eminent Domain as Popular as Richard Simmons' Jazzercise in Collin County

Private companies exercising eminent domain is eerily familiar to the TransTexas Corridor. TransTexas Corridor brought an emergence of grassroots groups opposed to a private, foreign company being granted the power of eminent domain. The Legislature ended the TransTexas Corridor years ago. But, private tollroad companies still exist, including The Texas Turnpike Corporation. It has proposed a new Northeast Gateway Toll Project. Vocal opposition to this project caused the first public meeting to be shut down by a fire marshall when capacity was quickly exceeded at the venue. The second public meeting turned heated with unanimous opposition. Such is the case when the words private company and eminent domain appear in the same sentence. [WFAA Dallas]