BLOG: Condemnation Law
Citizens and Property Owners Unhappy about Proposed Penn East Pipeline
As reported by Lehigh Valley Live, Penn East submitted its application to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in late September to install a gas transmission line that would cross through several New Jersey counties and into Pennsylvania. The new pipeline is part of Penn East’s Southern Reliability Link and would connect with the Williams-Transco... Read More
Grand Central Sues Over Air Rights Taking
In retaliatory fashion, the owner of Grand Central Station has sued the City of New York, et al. because of a recent approval that would allow its neighbor to construct a 1,000 foot high office tower. The New York Times reported on September 28th that the owner “filed a $1.1 billion lawsuit in United States... Read More
Nevada's "Area 51" Neighbors Facing Eminent Domain
90 miles north of Las Vegas exists one of U.S. military’s top-secret bases, Area 51. From novels to movies, Area 51 has garnered the public’s curiosities for decades. Unbeknownst to the public, however, a local family owning a 400-acre parcel has lived next door to Area 51 since its inception. For reasons of national security, the government last year initially offered... Read More
Restrictive Covenant in NY Zoning Approval Presents Prima Facie Case of Regulatory Taking
As reported by our Owners Counsel colleague, Mike Rikon, the New York Appellate Division reversed a Supreme Court ruling that had dismissed a regulatory takings claims in Blue Is. Dev., LLC v Town of Hempstead, 2015 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 6363, 2015 NY Slip Op 06488 (N.Y. App. Div. 2d Dep’t Aug. 12, 2015). The property... Read More
Failed Redevelopment Site Succeeds in Tax Appeal
Property tax issues arise commonly when a property designated for redevelopment fails to become a reality as originally proposed. In Seaboard Landing, LLC (“Seaboard”) v. Borough of Penns Grove (“Borough”), the Borough envisioned a redevelopment plan to revive a struggling commercial area along the waterfront on the Delaware River. In 2003, the Borough issued final site plan... Read More
Underwater Mortgages – At the Bottom of the Sea?
Here is an excellent recent article on the propriety of attempting to use eminent domain to “take” underwater mortgages in various places around the country. Entitled “Eminent Domain for Underwater Mortgages: Already on the Way to the Bottom of the Sea of Bad Ideas” , our Owners Counsel of America colleague Dwight Merriam summarizes what’s wrong with... Read More
From the Virgin Islands – Quick Take Not Reviewable on Appeal
One way to imagine being on the island of St Thomas is to read an opinion of the Supreme Court of the Virgin Islands. This “vacation” is work related because it is a condemnation case. The case is Beachside Associates, LLC v. Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority and was published on June 30, 2015.... Read More
Horne v. Dept. of Agriculture: Private Property Rights Trump Government's Raisin Reserve
The U.S. Supreme Court (“SCOTUS”) recently delivered its decision in Horne v. Dept. of Agriculture on the issue of the reserve requirement for raisins under the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937 (“AMA”). Our fellow Owners Counsel colleagues from New York and California, Michael Rikon and Robert Thomas, have kept a close watch on the... Read More
Two Takings Approved Over Owners' Objections
Two recent decisions in New Jersey once again addressed good faith negotiations that are required of condemning authorities prior to commencing condemnation litigation. In County of Morris v. Randolph Town Center Assocs., L.P., the property owner appealed the lower’s court’s decision arguing that the condemning authority failed to fully disclose certain aspects of the project in its appraisal, and... Read More
