permaculture

["Lawrence F. London, Jr." <lfl@intrex.net>]

http://www.cnn.com/2005/LAW/06/23/scotus.property.ap/index.html


 High court OKs personal property seizures


     Majority: Local officials know how best to help cities

Thursday, June 23, 2005; Posted: 10:50 a.m. EDT (14:50 GMT)


*
*

*WASHINGTON (AP) -- -- The Supreme Court on Thursday ruled that local 
governments may seize people's homes and businesses
-- even against their will -- for private economic development.*

It was a decision fraught with huge implications for a country with many 
areas, particularly the rapidly growing urban and suburban areas,
facing countervailing pressures of development and property ownership 
rights.

The 5-4 ruling represented a defeat for some Connecticut residents whose 
homes are slated for destruction to make room for an office complex.
They argued that cities have no right to take their land except for 
projects with a clear public use, such as roads or schools, or to 
revitalize blighted areas.

As a result, cities have wide power to bulldoze residences for projects 
such as shopping malls and hotel complexes to generate tax revenue.

Local officials, not federal judges, know best in deciding whether a 
development project will benefit the community, justices said.

<>...>