Why I Hate New York: Eminent Domain Edition

Eminent domain, which allows the government to seize private property for public use, is actually allowed in the Constitution (one of many things found in the 5th Amendment).

However, the 5th also makes it very clear that owners must be compensated fairly for their land and property (although I guess its questionable if that's really possible), and that such actions are only acceptable when the land is going to be put to public use, such as the construction of schools, hospitals, roads, etc. Unfortunately, eminent domain claims have been increasingly used for corrupt reasons, and to assist private development when people refuse to sell.

That's exactly what the City of New York is planning to do.

Nicole Gelinas of the Wall Street Journal questions the use of eminent domain in Brooklyn to help pave the way for a sports and entertainment complex (known as the "Atlantic Yards" project) in Prospect Heights.

"So to push the Atlantic Yards project through the courts, New York state isn't arguing that it needs to take Mr. Goldstein's property for economic development. Instead, it has declared that Mr. Goldstein's neighborhood is "blighted." This allows the state to condemn property on the theory that clearing unsanitary and unsafe slums constitutes a public benefit.

In fact, the Prospect Heights neighborhood that Mr. Goldstein and his wife have made their home is hardly a slum. Prospect Heights was thriving before Atlantic Yards construction began. It's a hip neighborhood that's a short hop on the subway from Manhattan.

To meet the needs of in-flowing residents, developers had been converting sturdy old warehouses into condos. One of the newer arrivals, Mr. Goldstein, paid $590,000 in 2003 for his three-bedroom condo in a distinctive, eight-story dry-goods warehouse designed by a renowned Chicago architect and solidly built nearly 80 years before. His neighborhood was home, too, to small-scale industrial firms and a still-operating Prohibition-era bar, as well as to working-class renters."

Hmm....that doesn't sound too slummy to me.

So how did Bruce Ratner, the developer, plan to convince the courts that these few city blocks needed to be razed to the ground in order to preserve the public well-being? They hired a consulting firm to cook up a report about how bad the area is, citing mostly weeds and graffiti (oh the horror). They also focused on the "under utilization" of the land, which makes the project an attempt at civic planning, rather than letting the market continue to improve the neighborhood, as it had been doing, driven by the demand for new apartments, like Goldstein's.

Damon Root, of Reason, says nothing good can come from this union of public power and private business:

"Ratner isn't planning to build a bridge or a road or any other legitimate public project that might permit the forceful taking of private property. He wants to build a basketball arena, sell tickets to the games (not to mention sell broadcast rights, advertising space, concessions, and merchandise), and make a big fat profit. That's not public use, it's private gain.

Furthermore, state officials have gone out of their way to put those profits in Ratner's hands. Consider that when the project was officially announced in 2003 there was no mention of blight, which is the state of extreme disrepair frequently cited by the ESDC to trigger an eminent domain taking under state law. Two years later, however, Ratner and the ESDC started claiming that the neighborhood was "blighted." Yet by that point Ratner had already acquired many of the properties he wanted (thanks to eminent domain) and left them empty, thus creating much of the unsightly neglect he now cites in support of his project."

According to Gelinas, Ratner is pretty well aware that his project is not a "public use" under any definition of the term. A few weeks ago, when questioned by a reporter about his specific plans for the location, Ratner replied: "Why should people get to see the plans? This isn't a public project."

Touche, sir. And hopefully the New York Court of Appeals sees it the same way when they rule on this case (Goldstein et al. v. Empire State Development Corporation) sometime in the next few days. A ruling is expected before Thanksgiving, reports the Bergen (N.J.) Record.

Of course, when you're relying on the government to save you from the government, I'm not sure I'd like your chances, even if the Constitution is on your side.

Here's a trailer for a documentary that is being made about the people living under the proposed Atlantic Yards footprint and their fight against the use of eminent domain.






Brooklyn Mayor Marty Markowitz (do you think they call him "Marty Mark"? I would.) says that this would make Brooklyn "the place to be in America." Sorry, Marty, but those words will never accurately describe Brooklyn. Even if you build a gold-plated arena bigger than the Vatican.

As a final note, I can't help but laugh at the commitment of Ratner to bring the New Jersey Nets to Brooklyn. Right now, the Nets are 0-12. You'd think the city of Brooklyn would be circulating a petition to keep them away.