Friday, March 02, 2007

Budget and Eminent Domain Open Thread

I'm wussing out again this morning. As I've bee whining all month, this winter is not to my liking.

There are 2 main things that I'd like to see people share their opinions on.

One is the Davenport budget, and the other is the proper use of eminent domain. That half of the discussion could be either about the Bettendorf Middle Road thing, or the whole "condemning for private companies" issue. I might throw my 2 cents in this afternoon, or maybe even post some real content.

Also, is anyone else surprised to see 70+ comments on the QCTimes article about Sonic coming to Davenport? Sheesh.

Lastly, all of us who start to complain about icy roads and shoveling walks should take a minute to think about the tornado victims in Alabama. Our problems aren't so bad compared to theirs.

12 comments:

cruiser said...

Is the widening of Locust Street by West High School going to involve any eminent domain? I know there are some easements in place, but 10 feet is a lot of front yard to lose.

Anonymous said...

Fairmount North of Locust is supposed to be a widening project a few years down the road too. Will the property owners have any say in that?

Anonymous said...

Sonic with 70+ comments. Still it's nice to read so many happy comments.

Anonymous said...

Eminent domain isn't usually "condemning for private companies."

Eminent domain is a power by which governments can take private property for public use.

Classic cases of eminent domain include things like taking private land to build a new highway. In such cases, the government has to fulfill its due process obligations to make sure that the taking is truly necessary, and that property owners are fairly compensated.

Note that in road widening cases where the city already has an easement on the private property where they want to put the road, eminent domain shouldn't be necessary, because the easement typically gives the city the right to build a road (and the public the right to use that road) on that private land without taking it. That doesn't mean there won't be a fight, though, as land owners may contest the validity or scope of the easement, or the easement may not be big enough for the widening job the city wants to do.

The "condemning for private companies" thing is a more recent development, where some governments have used their eminent domain power to take private property and turn it over to other private companies or individuals for development. The argument is that these projects are still for the public good and therefore a valid use of eminent domain. This is a controversial use of eminent domain, but the Supreme Court has upheld it.

Anonymous said...

QCI - did you read the out come of eminent domain in Bettendorf today.
You talk about a man who got the wrong end of the deal - thanks to the Surpreme Court. He is expected to take care of 10% slope in his driveway that he does not even own and can not get compensation to even take care of it. What is wrong with the decision makes of our country. The municipalities have way too much power.

anonymous said...

The city has plenty of right-of-way along Fairmount, not easement. An easment is still on private property, but allows the city or utility companies to use the easement for certain things. You need right-of-way (public property) to build a permanent road, not an easement.

QuadCityImages said...

10:08, I was talking about exactly that Kelo case when I mentioned the private use thing. That was big discussion back on Fly's blog when the court case was originally upheld, but I figured people would still want to talk about it.

Cruiser, is that driveway thing that different from how sidewalks and boulevards are treated? They're a strange mixture of yours and not yours, with limits placed on what you can do, and you have to pay for fixing the "city" sidewalk.

Anonymous said...

Not only is the curbline, boulevard and sidewalk the residents responsability, but also the alleyway from the sides of he parcel out to the center point.

Anonymous said...

Although the sidewalk and boulevard are the homeowner's responsibility to maintain, the city will pay half the costs to repair bad sidewalk. They will also pay half to fix curb, unless you get lucky and have your street patched or resurfaced, in which case the city will fit the bill for any curb replaced.

Anonymous said...

Sonic, you just do not know true fantastic fast food. Any trips, mainly south, were always worth the extra mile to stop for a cherry limeade, etc.

No it will not cause people to relocate to QC, but it is one of those places that many wish we had.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for that report, Porky Pig!

QuadCityImages said...

Hey, I like Sonic. I have it every year when I'm down in Phoenix. I just think its funny how many comments the article got.