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Real Estate & Property Law

National Eminent Domain Blog

Covers eminent domain and condemnation.
By Alan Ackerman

Post Frequency: 2.8/day

Last Entry: April 01, 2011 at 16:47:47

Freeport EDC sues investor

Posted on September 27, 2010
This blog entry is about the Freeport, Texas case which is one of the raucous and inappropriate condemnation actions of the decade. The City of Freeport EDC attempted to acquire an area of land so a grandchild of a former Patron of the community could come back once again and avail himself of the community's resources...

The Limit of Takings for a Private End User

Posted on September 24, 2010
The Kansas City Business Journal article covers the very difficult issue of how to redevelop in a metropolitan area. The problem remains that private developers often want more than developers control. Owners may want what they perceive to be fair compensation in a market where there is a demand for the property as part of the larger assemblage...

Enbridge Name Tarnished

Posted on September 24, 2010
Trading Markets offered an article on the Enbridge oil spill, explaining how local counsel opposing the pipeline are raising the safety issue. It is not a question of whether the pipeline is safe or not. Clearly, it can be safe enough not to affect value if all safety precautions are utilized...

PA Legislature Proposes a Pipeline Regulation Bill

Posted on September 23, 2010
Representative Matt Baker, a Republican out of Wellsboro, Pennsylvania, brightly understood that there are multiple problems with pipeline regulation. One of the most substantial problems may be that some pipelines are not regulated. Mr...

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Lancaster Farming Hogwash

Posted on September 23, 2010
One should read the Lancaster Farming article published last week. The article must have been written by a P.R. firm for the local correspondent. The article makes it sound like things are so easy. If one reads the article they will find that there is a claim that FERC controls all pipelines in the interstate system...

DRIC Bridge Faces Further Delay

Posted on September 22, 2010
The WDIV article has it right. There is no precise 'feeling' of what should come out of the House and Senate. At the same time, one must acknowledge that the underlying principles of legislation is to allow debate on a subject when there is no precise knowledge prior to passage of a bill on the table...

North Charleston Rail Plans

Posted on September 20, 2010
In the linked article, which is simply a press release from the Perryman Group, a description of the balancing act of costs and benefits is outlined. Two alternative proposals are described in the article. The Perryman Group, which prepared the plan for CSX Transportation in the City of North Charleston, urged the preference over potential rail sitings...

Property Values

Posted on September 20, 2010
National Petroleum News Issue Date: March 2010, Posted On: 3/24/2010 Property Values Alan T. Ackerman Owners of petroleum station operations throughout the country have been faced with the harsh reality of condemnation. As more and more land is being taken by the government for electrical, gas, highway expansion, water reservoirs, dam expansions and other uses, this issue will continue to resonate throughout our petroleum communities...

Mayor Bing No Longer Sends a Mixed Message

Posted on September 14, 2010
In the most recent Mlive article written by Jonathan Oosting, Mayor Bing's provided a final decision that there will be no eminent domain as part of the downsizing for the City of Detroit. At the same time, the Mayor said, 'relocation would ‘absolutely' be part of any plan' to have the city right sized...

Hiring Competent Counsel

Posted on September 08, 2010
Owners often have trouble finding competent counsel to represent them in condemnation cases. All too frequently, they experience counsel that has worked for acquisition agencies, such as utilities, cities or counties. An owner is probably best looking at an attorney which is viewed as the best in their own jurisdiction...

Owner Wins an Airport Case

Posted on September 07, 2010
A Cincinnati Enquirer article explained how difficult a time an owner had in obtaining just compensation. Situations in which properties could be rezoned or used for a different use but for the contemplated airport action, are common throughout the country...

Floodplain Proposals Cause Havoc in North Fort Collins

Posted on September 02, 2010
In Colorado, the method of setting aside land so that there won't be preservation of the floodplain hydrogeologics is raising havoc in North Fort Collin, Colorado. The problem is one in which owners do not understand that if they totally develop the properties, the retention of waters may not occur...

City Council Lawyer Claims a Conflict

Posted on September 02, 2010
When the City Council lawyer files a case against the City Council, people really get upset. The question is 'whether the City Council lawyer is acting as a lawyer for the city in all affairs?' Does this abridge his rights to represent owners against agencies of the city? Does information he received at the City Council meetings interfere with his activities? Does he know what happens at closed sessions? How divided are his activities? It is always a problem to handle cases against the community that you work for...

Texas Eastern Transmission L.P. Pushes Forward in Arkansas

Posted on September 01, 2010
The Texas Eastern Transmission Company has notified residents and businesses in Arkansas that their pipeline representative is about to seek acquisition of their property. This is being done prior to approval of the environmental assessment by FERC...

Clean Energy Writer Has a Different Attitude

Posted on August 31, 2010
Craig Shields, Editor of 2GreenEnergy.com maintains a different outlook on the power transmission system. The owners often worry about the harm to the personalized, farming or business operations. Mr. Shields insight is probably consistent with the majority in the country, although certainly not those facing the task of retaining a lawyer and fighting a condemnation proceeding...

Keystone Moves Forward in Nebraska

Posted on August 31, 2010
The property owners in Nebraska face an aggressive acquisition utility in Keystone. The questions raised by the linked article from the Lincoln Journal Star are multiple. First, should Keystone start acquiring 'within thirty days', prior to obtaining permission from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and any other necessary licensing authorities? Second, does Keystone understand the effect it may have on the environment in Nebraska? Third, do the owners understand they should not expect a million dollars unless there is a million dollars worth of damages? Just compensation is not a gift but a constitutional right premised upon fairness...

Property Owner Complains About Pooling

Posted on August 30, 2010
Ron Kamzelski wrote a letter to the Editor of the Wellsboro Pennsylvania Gazette explaining his anger about eminent domain acquisition to require forced pooling. The underlying problem remains one of how you value a lease...

Living by the Rule of Law

Posted on August 27, 2010
In a Northern Nevada Business Weekly article, local elected officials attacked the notion that mining is of 'paramount interest', allowing private corporations to exercise the right of eminent domain. The rule of law is one in which a statutory provision, so long as it is in the State constitutional parameters, will be upheld as valid...

Local Newspaper Gets It Wrong

Posted on August 27, 2010
In the El Paso Inc. article, the Texas Tech Foster School of Medicine is seeking some unfair sum as just compensation. The article concludes that buying a few 'slivers' has raised the price of our project. The article does not recognize that the law firm of Adler and Barron, specializing in eminent domain throughout Texas and based in Austin, is simply seeking to have the City follow the law and pay just compensation for what is taken...

Skepticism as to when the eve of the Skyland Center take off will occur

Posted on August 25, 2010
The Skyland Center, premised upon substantial government intervention will finally occur. However, the markets and demands for commercial are not necessarily what they used to be. Further, the interference with the rights of the owners and small businessmen in the shopping center has been negatively affected by the taking for years...

When conflict of interest embarrasses

Posted on August 25, 2010
Even if the city official is not in any way a participant in the negotiation process, embarrassment results once those close to them, be they family or friends, are in the acquisition process. When the aunt of a St. Petersburg city official acquired something in excess of fair market value, even if otherwise acceptable, the result was an embarrassment to the community! Tampa Bay...

The Problem in Evaluating Gas Pipelines

Posted on August 24, 2010
The people in South Dakota are concerned with the safety system of the pipelines. The reality is that the Michigan MPSC and the national FERC apparently understood that a pipeline in the Marshall Michigan area was a problem. Yet, they chose to allow the dangers to fester until there was a complete break in a pipeline creating havoc on the Kalamazoo River...

Transmission Lines Come to Oklahoma

Posted on August 24, 2010
Oklahoma farmers are being told that the development of wind energy will require transmission lines through the communities. Logically, this is an arguably 'clean' form of energy and will be a great help to our environment. It even calls itself 'Clean Line' to impress upon us how clean it is...

Future battles with ITC

Posted on August 19, 2010
The article describes the concerns of a party who may be condemned in the future. The problem with electric transmission damages is that there are so many areas which must be reviewed. What is the damage to the economic unity of a farming operation? What are 'rental' values? What is the 'use' of the parcel after the taking and has the highest and best use been modified? These are the types of issues that outstanding Kansas lawyers, like John Hamilton of Topeka, will be required to deal with when facing a difficult and disciplined acquiring agency like ITC...

Taking of a Donald Ross golf course

Posted on August 19, 2010
The Township of River Vale apparently desires to acquire the country club by eminent domain. This Donald Ross golf course maintains a necessary five acres for affordable housing in the area. The Township first recognized that filing against a bankrupt estate requires federal bankruptcy court approval...

Spectra Pipeline in NJ

Posted on August 19, 2010
The Hudson Reporter received an article from an individual citizen expounding upon how everyone should be writing to the different government officials in opposition to the proposed Spectra pipeline. The problem with the position taken by the writer is that the pipeline has to get to New York City and, as such, will likely be required to traverse a part of New Jersey, and in all likelihood, a part of Jersey City, in order to get to New York City...

Iowa Airport May Have to Purchase Homes

Posted on August 19, 2010
The FAA is requiring massive changes to its runway structure, RPZ requirements and airport operations. The problem with these changes is that it leaves owners facing future easements and the risk of devaluation to the property. Frequently, these diminutions are already included prior to the take, making it difficult for the owners to properly prove the market value but for the condemnation activity...

CSX Expansion Plans

Posted on August 19, 2010
The Telegram & Gazette writer of Worcester, MA provides some understanding of what is occurring with this CSX eminent domain proceeding. The 'partial takings' have the effect of diminishing the remainders of parcels. Hopefully, CSX will know how to be fair and truly analyze what is being taken and the effects of the taking...

Outstanding eminent domain lawyer Matthew Fellerhoff is elevated.

Posted on August 18, 2010
Ohio Governor Ted Strickland had the good sense to appoint an outstanding lawyer to the Hamilton County Municipal Court should be noted by all in the eminent domain process. Matt Fellerhoff was an outstanding eminent domain and municipal attorney for Manley Burke for many years...

Montana Gets it Right

Posted on August 16, 2010
The limitation by state regulators requiring the pipeline developer to allow the interconnection of local energy is key for the development of the State. The biggest problem would be that some future Public Service Commission in the State changes its position on regulation and thereby allows the Canadian company complete autonomy in its future actions...

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