Atlanta mayoral candidate Lisa Borders says she'll use eminent domain powers to take land from owners who poorly maintain their property..."We need to take it from them," said Borders, the City Council president.Many a politician will hem and haw when it comes to eminent domain, then when no one is looking they'll sign off on stealing grandma's shack in order to throw up the latest prefab condo/mixed use/Starbucks hostel.
I suppose give Borders credit for blunt honesty, but advocating the government deciding who has blighted property and who is all lilies and roses is shocking. Hell, it's frightening.
27 comments:
um. Wow.
You do know what eminent domain means, don't you Grifty? You should read your constitution, particularly the 5th Amendment. The power of the government to usurp private property has ALWAYS existed in the US. What Lisa is talking about here is taking abandoned and condemned properties around the city (surely you have seen them) and using them for the city's gain. We're not talking about any sort of Bush executive order, here. I know I'd want those shantytown crack houses south of I-20 converted into something nice. Don't you?
Someone get Reed and Norwood taking a position on this issue, stat.
Why am I suddenly having Rand Knight flashbacks?
I am well aware of what eminent domain means and I am well aware of what both the Georgia and U.S. Constitution say on the matter.
Please point to where I said it is unconstitutional. I didn't. I did say it is wrong. You can be constitutional and still be wrong.
And to answer your trappy little question. Nope. Don't bother me a bit.
You clearly know very little about eminent domain. Property cannot be used for private consumption (Starbucks and the like) It's for public projects like parks, etc.
Also, you should check out these videos so you can be more informed:
The Real Mary Norwood: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AS0ekhf6PHM
The Real Kasim Reed: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNzsjuAzGJA
Oh really?
Might I suggest you google the word Kelo.
NEXT!
Let me go ahead and adopt the O'Connor dissent in Kelo as my statement regarding blighted properties and eminent domain.
To "No" and "Anonymous" @04:06:00, you are both not current on the state of eminent domain and 5th amendment jurisprudence. You should read the majority opinion before further commenting.
So it sounds like you're one of these "states rights" advocates. Are you for Georgia seceding from the Union also! How terrible!
but advocating the government deciding who has blighted property ... [is] frightening.
And, I suppose, this is where libertarians and I go our separate ways. Because as far as I'm concerned, government is the exact entity to do this.
Wow, someone needs a refresher course in Kelo before spouting off and accusing anyone else of being uninformed. The property in Kelo wasn't taken for a public use, "No."
"Anonymous @04:17:00 PM" -
You're an idiot. The Supreme Court of the United States held that the taking in Kelo was for a public use.
"This Court’s authority, however, extends only to determining whether the City’s proposed condemnations are for a “public use” within the meaning of the Fifth Amendment to the Federal Constitution. Because over a century of our case law interpreting that provision dictates an affirmative answer to that question, we may not grant petitioners the relief that they seek."
The ink just dried on the signature line of my advance voting ballot. Ms. Norwood is some change that I can finally believe in. Today's statement from Ms. Borders may, in fact, be the coup de grace for her campaign.
First I don't know the Constitution and now I'm "secesh"? NO, you're starting to make me think you're actually a friend who's just yanking my chain.
Richard, I think we both know where we stand on Kelo. The bottom line is the majority used some pretty tortured logic to justify what was essentially a private development as a public work. The abomination that is Kelo is that it opened the door to all sorts of "good intentions".
Full Disclosure: I don't like any candidate in this race.
Why is this position surprising? Coming from Borders, it seems less of a confession and more of a confirmation. This is exactly why I'm not interested in voting for her.
However, this is not to say I trust either Norwood or Spikes to not attempt to sell us downriver through indirect or backdoor means. I'm thinking lack of obstruction, tax-free development deals, and/or other shenanigans in the name of 'economic growth'.
Also, I'd like to see the original interview copy. The lack of context makes TFA look more like a Buckhead-generated hit piece than actual reporting.
Grifty, just admit you don't want to have a nice city. You don't want old, rundown, abandoned buildings in the city to be refurbished into restaurants, shops, or any other mixed use facilities. Because that would be the truth, not this mess about Kelo you're talking about. Do you even live in the city limits? Because if you don't, then your opinion is baseless. Stop trying to confuse undecided voters with this slime.
@Some Other Mike: But you can leave it to the AJC's yellow journalism to only present part of a story without proper context. No wonder they're getting their butts out of ATL. What a waste.
NO, you really are a clown. I would ask you if you've read anything I've ever written since your statement that I don't want to have a nice city is absurd. But then you ask me if I'm a resident when I stated clearly in this very piece that I'm not.
So, either take a class in reading comprehension or at least try to pretend your participating and not just pontificating.
Grift,
To be fair, you didn't state that you weren't a resident. You said you didn't have a vote.
I just assumed that you lived in Atlanta but couldn't vote because of prior convictions. My bad I guess.
Oh, you're not a resident? Then you have no say in this matter, Grifty. NEXT!
Fair point. ;)
For the record I am not a resident.
But that ain't gonna stop me from saying this is wrong on many levels.
Fair point was directed at Icarus. Not the clown NO.
Oh and I do have a say. Since we're discussing the Constitution how about you back your little red wagon up to the 1st.
Before I decided to rule out voting for Borders, I was already less than pleased with her over-reliance on public-private partnerships as a funding tool for just about everything.
This idea, along with the whole "Infrastructure Development Districts" represents, to me, the way executives from Cousins tend to think.
If there's one thing I hate to see as much as the NIMBYs having too much power in our city, it would be the developers having too much power in our city. That's why neither Borders nor Norwood are getting my vote.
Grift, why do you hate America?
While this is a diverting theoretical discussion, eminent domain in real life is a sobering experience. It amounts to legal theft under the badge of government.
And private property owners facing this legal action quickly learn that they are not standing on a level playing field legally, economically or ethically.
We are among a group of property owners who have endured a transformative two-year eminent domain fight with Houston-based Spectra Energy, backed by the power of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
Our fight led to the development of a website which focuses specifically on property rights that come under pressure from energy and utility companies (aha, the "public good" argument).
We are happy to share what we've learned. For info, go to our website: http://spectraenergywatch.com/blog/
As a City of Atlanta HOA president I'd love to threaten a few deadbeats around this here "booming westside" ranch with a Lisa Borders-ish, faux Chanel-suited finger wagging if they don't clean up after their damn dogs.
I agree with Eminent Domain in certain instances. The problem thatI have with Lisa Borders comment (really all her comments) is that she doesn't put any meant into it. There is no definition on what a shoddy or decrepit house means.
I grew up below I-20, and I vote, so this issue is important. What is equally important is the definition of "poorly maintained." Legally you can take my house becuase I didn't cut the grass for 3 weeks. I can see this becoming a slippery slope favoring Cousins.
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