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August 30, 2009
Watch our public advocate debate now!
The Brooklyn Paper
By Jeremy Walsh
A debate between four candidates for Public Advocate included a discussion of eminent domain abuse.
Last week, the candidates — Councilmembers Bill DeBlasio (D–Park Slope) and Eric Gioia (D-Queens), civil rights lawyer Norman Siegel and former Public Advocate Mark Green — clashed in a spirited debate held by The Brooklyn Paper in conjunction with Brooklyn Independent Television.
The debate aired on the BCAT TV Network last week, but it’s available to watch whenever you want both on this Web site and on BoroPolitics.com, a new site set up by the Community Newspaper Group, the parent company of this newspaper.
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Indeed, some of the most-heated exchanges came during a question about the city’s use of eminent domain in its Willets Point redevelopment.
DeBlasio said he supported eminent domain in “very certain circumstances,” including the Queens project, while Gioia called the practice “absolutely wrong” for economic development.
“Often the city says it will only use eminent domain if it has to, but that’s like negotiating with Al Capone, who walks in, puts a gun on the table, and says, ‘Pay no attention to the gun. I’ll only use it if I have to.’”
Siegel agreed that there has been “abuse” of eminent domain, not just at Willets Point, but at Atlantic Yards, too. He cited the Supreme Court’s 2005 Kelo verdict, which allowed such use of eminent domain to seize privately owned land under many circumstances, but not if there is a closed process or if there is bad faith.
Green, who supports the Willets Point redevelopment, challenged Siegel’s reading of the law, but Siegel’s reiterated that his interpretation of the 5-4 verdict was correct because there had been both bad faith and a closed process at Willets Point.
Posted by steve at August 30, 2009 9:28 AM