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June 25, 2010
High Court Overturns Columbia Eminent Domain Ruling; No One's Property is Safe in New York
Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn
DDDB trumpets a badly needed call to action.
Back in October the Court of Appeals allowed Ratner and New York State to move forward with eminent domain for Atlantic Yards. In a contrasting decision a Manhattan lower appellate court said Columbia could not use eminent domain to seize businesses in West Harlem. Today the high court ruled that any time government says there is "blight" the court has basically no role whatsover in reviewing that decision, no matter how corrupt or collusive that decision appears on its face.
So the Columbia expansion and Atlantic Yards bogus blight findings have now been given the stamp of approval by the state's high court. And the same court thinks that private arenas and private schools are somehow a public use.
Nonsense.
It is a very sad day for all New Yorkers. There appears to be no judicial review allowed when state actors and their developer friends collude to take homes and businesses from the little guy. Twice now the high court has excused itself from any meaningful review of the government's abuse of this awesome power.
The upsetting rulings leave no doubt for what must be done. Legislative reform must occur if we are going to protect our citizens from eminent domain abuse such as what has occurred in Prospect Heights, West Harlem and elsewhere.
There is such reform afoot. Senator Bill Perkins has a bill that would not allow these kind of bogus blight findings. The bill has made it out of committee and the full Senate must vote on it.
Please call or email Senate Leader John Sampson to tell him that New Yorker's no longer have any protection against eminent domain abuse—not from the Court's and not from the Legislature—and so the Senate must vote on the Perkins bill and must pass it...today. There is no more time to wait.
Call Senator Sampson at: (518) 455-2788
Email Senator Sampson at: sampson@senate.state.ny.usUntil this bill passes, everyone New Yorker's home or business is vulnerable to government seizure if a developer covets it.
Posted by eric at June 25, 2010 8:59 AM