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May 9, 2006
California Town Uses Eminent Domain To Block Wal-Mart
NY Sun
By Josh Gerstein
America’s largest retailer, Wal-Mart, already besieged by anti-globalization protests, discrimination lawsuits, and critical documentaries, now faces a new threat: the use of eminent domain powers to seize its real estate.
Wal-Mart opponents in Hercules, Calif., a small city 20 miles north of Oakland, have persuaded local officials to begin eminent domain proceedings to take possession of a 17-acre parcel that the company hoped to develop into a new store.
“The city is being very brave,” a Hercules resident who supports the effort to drive Wal-Mart off the land, Jeffra Cook, told The New York Sun. “It is a big fight. It’s a brave step.”
The attempted land seizure is a kind of turnabout for Wal-Mart, which has repeatedly encouraged other local governments to pursue eminent domain takings to clear the large lots the company needs for its stores.
The typical staunch-Conservative/Libertarian response:
A spokesman for a national group critical of eminent domain takings, the Castle Coalition, said seizing the property from Wal-Mart would be wrong if the city is simply planning to hand the land over to another developer.“If they do intend to transfer it to another private owner,it’s an abuse like any other,” the spokesman, Steven Anderson, said. “It doesn’t matter whether Wal-Mart may have benefited from eminent domain in other situations.”
The all-too-typical Progressive/Liberal response:
An official with the local branch of the Sierra Club, Michael Daley, said he had no qualms about invoking eminent domain to block Wal-Mart. “In a lot of cases, we would be appalled by what happens with eminent domain,” he said. “This seems like a last resort, but of course when you’re dealing with Wal-Mart, it’s no surprise you need the last resort.”
NoLandGrab: Local governments deciding which private retailer serves the public good is an example of the Kelo decision run amok. Since Hercules isn't planning on building a public park or trying to change the zoning, one can only assume that they town wants to give the land to another company.
We point out the difference between the extremes of the political spectrum to illustrate why liberals tend to consider eminent domain on a case-by-case basis, but generally oppose its use when low-income homeowners are the victims of government takings.
Conservatives whose sympathies lie with big business will frequently keep mum on the topic, which leaves Libertarians like the Castle Coalition to spearhead the movement for eminent domain reform.
Posted by lumi at May 9, 2006 7:56 AM