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May 3, 2006
Bloomberg Says Power to Seize Private Land Is Vital to Cities
The NY Times
By Diane Cardwell
Wading into yet another contentious national debate, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg came out vigorously yesterday in support of the government's right to seize property by eminent domain, and said Congressional attempts to limit those powers would have dire consequences for the nation's cities.
...
The mayor is most concerned that the pending legislation would cut off all federal economic development funds to state or local governments for up to two years if they use eminent domain in private development projects. Bloomberg administration officials warned that passage of the bill in Congress could, at a minimum, mean the loss of hundreds of millions of dollars and almost 100,000 jobs for the city.
The article cites Atlantic Yards as an unpopular local use of eminent domain and includes a double disclosure:
In New York, for example, the proposed use of eminent domain by the developer Forest City Ratner to bring a basketball arena and a swath of residential, office and commercial towers to the Atlantic Terminal area touched off fierce opposition, especially in surrounding neighborhoods.
The concept, though, proved unpopular elsewhere as well. A New York Times poll in April 2004 found that only 18 percent of city residents favored the construction of a new basketball arena in Brooklyn it if it required the demolition of homes and businesses. (Forest City Ratner is the development partner of The New York Times Company in building its new Midtown headquarters, a project that itself involved government condemnation of private property.)
Supporters of eminent domain claim that its use requires a determination of "blight." Dana Berliner from the Institue for Justice points out:
"New York's blight designation is a joke," Ms. Berliner said. "You can call anything in the state blighted under New York's definition."
In reference to the 18-percent figure cited in the article, Norman Oder notes in Atlantic Yards Report that, "The Times finally reports (two years late) on poll results opposing Brooklyn arena."
Also, NY Sun, MAYOR UPS THE ANTE ON EMINENT DOMAIN
Posted by lumi at May 3, 2006 6:40 AM