Empire State Domain

“New York is perhaps the worst state in the country for eminent domain abuse.” That is according to a report released yesterday by the Castle Coalition, a project of the libertarian Institute for Justice. It’s not hard to see why. In just the last five years, New York has condemned small businesses on behalf of the New York Stock Exchange, the New York Times, Home Depot, Costco, and Stop & Shop.Eminent domain is the power by which the government is able to take private property for public use for projects such as highways, bridges, prisons, and courts. It is limited by the Fifth Amendment, the last clause of which states: “nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.” In practice, governments — federal, state, and local — have expanded the use of this power to benefit private entities and to pursue politicians’ ideas of “economic development.” The Castle Coalition’s report, “Public Power, Private Gain,” is the first ever catalogue of abuses of eminent domain to serve private interests.The stories from New York recounted in the Castle Coalition report paint an ugly picture — especially those from the Big Apple. The New York Times’ deal for a new headquarters in Times Square is worth recounting. The Times worked out a deal under which the Empire State Development Corporation would condemn an entire city block, razing 10 properties and a parking lot. A number of residences — including the Sussex House dormitory, which housed 140 students — and more than 30 thriving businesses — including Arnold Hatters and B&J Fabrics — will be swept away to accommodate the Times. The Times will be paying about $62 per square foot for its acquisition, according to the report, as opposed to $130 per square foot paid in a comparable private transaction for a nearby parcel.The Castle Coalition report recounts another situation that has unfolded to the south. The New York Stock Exchange, in lower Manhattan, wanted a location to build a new headquarters. It decided on a site across the street from its current location. Unfortunately for the NYSE, however, the location was occupied by residential and commercial properties. Instead of letting that get it down, however, the NYSE decided to threaten the city with leaving Manhattan altogether if it didn’t help in the acquisition of the properties. The New York City Economic Development Corporation complied and began the process of condemning the apartment building at 45 Wall Street. The tenants’ association fought the move, but a state appeals court sided with the city. The court cited that the project would have a public benefit, would increase tax revenues, and would aid economic development. Judged by such criteria, it’s hard to see why a government use of eminent domain would ever be denied — even to bulldoze an older woman’s house to build, say, a limousine parking lot for a Donald Trump casino (as New Jersey tried unsuccessfully to do, and Vera Coking fought off, though it took her much of the 1990s). Regardless, the public benefit has not materialized: The NYSE got cold feet after September 11, 2001, and the taxpayers have lost tens of millions of dollars on the move.These are but two high-profile cases. There are plenty more less attention-getting ones listed by the Castle Coalition in its report. The Lower East Side Tenant Museum at 97 Orchard Street is lobbying the ESDC to condemn a property next door in order to build an elevator and provide handicapped access to the museum, which tries to recreate the experience of millions of poor immigrants during the last century. The problem: The actual tenants next door, who have owned the property for 93 years, have renovated and don’t want to sell — and they don’t think taking real housing and using it to simulate decrepit housing is a particularly valid “public use.” In East Harlem, the city forced the closure of a family furniture-making business to make way for a Home Depot. The Castle Coalition report says there have been at least 14 projects using eminent domain to benefit private entities in New York, which have taken at least 57 businesses.While politicians may find their own visions of how New York’s landscape should look to be a compelling reason for violating the rights of property owners, the founders of this nation protected citizens from capricious takings. Just because a project might have a “public benefit” — such as increasing tax revenues — does not mean it is a “public use” under the Constitution; the takings recounted by the Castle Coalition are clearly private endeavors. And just because the government pays nominal fees to the property owners does not mean their rights have not been violated — the market price is whatever price they are willing to sell for, and if property is being seized, the owners are getting the short end of the stick. New York’s Legislature considered three bills last year to give property owners more notice before an attempt is made to condemn their property and after it has been condemned, according to the Castle Coalition. The bills died without passing either house. Their reconsideration would be a positive, if small, step toward making sure that a person’s home or business is indeed his or her castle in the Empire State.

Empire State Domain

Empire State Domain

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