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On Blueberry Hill – Property Owner Seeks Injunction from US Supreme Court
Not very sexy to sing ‘I found my thrill on Blueberry Hill Public Golf Course & Lounge’, but these are strange days indeed. The name of the case is actually “Friends of Danny DeVito v. Tom Wolf” but if I were the property owner’s lawyer I would have led with Blueberry Hill…. I digress. This... Read More
Property Rights Trampled by COVID-19
The United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida just denied a temporary injunction to a group of beachfront property owner’s suing to enjoin a governmental Order that temporarily and totally denied their use and enjoyment of private property. The Order denied access to the owners private beach. If you have 5 minutes,... Read More
Owner’s Verdict Potpourri of Condemnation Valuation Principles
Last month, the a New Jersey appellate court affirmed a $3,000,000.00 verdict rendered by a Camden County jury for the taking of an eight story 80,000 s.f. building in Camden City Center. The full text of the opinion is here: Estate of Rubin v. Camden Parking Authority. The Parking Authority appealed arguing the owner’s valuation... Read More
Federal Appeals Court Rules PennEast Cannot Haul State into Federal Court for Pipeline Takings
We may be late to the party, as there has already been a lot of publicity over this decision, but thought we would add a few lines for our readers. The Circuit Court immediately explained that the District Court granted PennEast “orders of condemnation and preliminary injunctive relief for immediate access to the properties.” Slip... Read More
50 Year Old Newark Blight Designation Invalidated
On August 16, 2019, the Honorable Thomas Vena, J.S.C. invalidated a 50-year-old blight designation of Plaintiff Benjamin Moore’s property in Newark, New Jersey. The full text of the opinion is a worthwhile read and can be found here. In one respect, it is a fountainhead decision because the Court invalidated a blight designation that had... Read More
Appellate Court Affirms Favorable Owner Verdict Where Owner Did Not Present Appraisal Expert
The Appellate Division recently affirmed a judgment awarding a property owner $4,500,000 where the only appraisal expert testimony was the condemning agency’s expert, who opined that the property in question was only worth $2,830,000. The case was captioned Township of Manalapan v. Gentile and was commenced in August of 2010 to acquire a 45 acre... Read More
PennEast Pipeline Under Appeal to Federal Circuit Court of Appeal
On August 10, 2018, FERC issued an Order Denying Requests for Rehearing on its grant of a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity to PennEast Pipeline, LLC.2018-8-10 FERC Order Denying Rehearing. On August 13, 2018, New Jersey Conservation Foundation and Delaware Riverkeeper appealed. FERC issued its Certificate for the PennEast Pipeline in January of this... Read More
Pro Se Redevelopment Challenges Unsuccessful in Union City
Two recent Appellate Division cases rejected the arguments of a pro se party challenging Union City’s efforts to redevelop “blighted areas”. Both cases are captioned Larry Price v. Union City. The first opinion issued on December 21, 2017 and the second February 13, 2018. Links to the full text are below. Price v Union City... Read More
Redevelopment Designation Affirmed on Appeal
A two-judge panel of the Appellate Division recently affirmed a decision of the Law Division (Ocean County) upholding a condemnation redevelopment designation in Tradewinds Marina, Inc. v. Borough of South Toms River (A-273-16T2) (unpublished opinion here). In short, while the sole objecting property owner complained of some clear irregularities in the proceedings, the owner did... Read More
Newark Property Owner Loses Date of Value Argument
On August 2, 2017, the Appellate Division affirmed several Law Division orders arising out of a long-running dispute between the County of Essex and the owners of property located in the City of Newark. The appellate court affirmed trial court orders; 1) setting the date of value, 2) denying reconsideration thereof, and 3) memorializing a... Read More
