George Will has written a Washington Post column on the abuse of “blight” condemnations in New York: On Aug. 27, 1776, British forces routed George Washington’s novice army in the Battle of Brooklyn, which was fought in fields and woods where today the battle of Prospect Heights is being fought. Americans’ liberty is again under […]
Archive | Post-Kelo Reform
New York Intermediate Appellate Court Invalidates Taking of “Blighted” Property for Transfer to Columbia University, but Contradicts Recent State Supreme Court Decision in the Process
By Ilya Somin on December 3, 2009 7:06 pm in Blight, Eminent Domain, Post-Kelo Reform, Property Rights
In Kaur v. New York Urban Development Corporation,a close 3-2 decision [HT: Neighborhood Retail Alliance], a New York intermediate appellate court has invalidated the taking of property in the Manhattanville neighborhood of New York City for transfer to Columbia University. Columbia and the government claimed that the land in question was blighted. However, the court […]
New York Court of Appeals Upholds Atlantic Yards Condemnations
By Ilya Somin on November 24, 2009 4:14 pm in Blight, Eminent Domain, Kelo, Post-Kelo Reform, Property Rights
The New York Court of Appeals has issued its opinion in Goldstein v. New York State Urban Development Corporation, an important property rights case. The 6-1 decision upholds the condemnation of numerous properties in Atlantic Yards project area in Brooklyn for the purpose of transferring them to powerful developer Bruce Ratner, who plans to use […]
NY Times Blog Discussion on the Implications of Pfizer’s Decision to Abandon its New London Facility Near the Site of the Kelo Takings
By Ilya Somin on November 13, 2009 12:30 pm in Eminent Domain, Kelo, Post-Kelo Reform, Property Rights
The New York Times Room for Debate blog has a forum on the implications of Pfizer’s decision to abandon its New London headquarters. Pfizer and its New London facility had previously played a key role in instigating the condemnations that led to the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the use of eminent domain for “economic […]
Texas’ Amendment 11: Another Post-Kelo Eminent Domain Reform that Falls Short
By Ilya Somin on November 10, 2009 9:18 pm in Eminent Domain, Kelo, Post-Kelo Reform, Property Rights
It hasn’t gotten much media attention, but last week, Texas voters overwhelmingly approved Amendment 11, an eminent domain reform measure that purports to ban “economic development” takings of the kind the Supreme Court upheld in Kelo v. City of New London. Texas badly needs stronger protection for property rights, since it has a long history […]
New York’s Highest Court to Hear Important Eminent Domain Case
By Ilya Somin on October 9, 2009 3:10 pm in Blight, Eminent Domain, Kelo, Post-Kelo Reform, Property Rights
The New York Court of Appeals – the state’s highest court -is about to consider an important property rights case, Goldstein v. New York State Urban Development Corporation. The case involves a challenge to the condemnation of large amounts of property for the purpose of transferring the land to influential developer Bruce Ratner, who plans […]
Goldstein v. Pataki and the Shortcomings of Kelo:
By Ilya Somin on February 1, 2008 11:27 pm in Eminent Domain, Kelo, Post-Kelo Reform, Property Rights, Uncategorized
The US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit recently decided Goldstein v. Pataki, a case challenging the condemnation of homes and other property in Brooklyn for the purpose of transferring them to developer Bruce Ratner, owner of the New Jersey Nets. Ratner plans to use the land to build a new stadium for the […]