« Ind. Courts - "Courts clerk still appearing as attorney" | Main | Ind. Courts - More on "Montgomery County judges issue mandate for staff raises" »
Saturday, August 20, 2005
Law - A new twist on eminent domain?
"Businessman Battles the City for Power Plant" is the headline to this story today in the NY Times that begins:
At a time when the United States Supreme Court has granted local governments free rein to condemn private property on behalf of commercial projects, an energy entrepreneur says he is going City Hall one better: he plans to condemn some prime Brooklyn waterfront land himself.Adam H. Victor, the president of TransGas Energy Systems, has sought for four years to build a $1.3 billion power plant on the East River in Williamsburg despite opposition from the community and Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg's administration. Mr. Victor ran up against a determined deputy mayor, Daniel L. Doctoroff, who preferred that the city condemn the land south of the Bushwick Inlet for a possible Olympic diving center and a waterfront park in the crumbling industrial neighborhood.
Then Mr. Victor found an obscure 1909 state law that lets utilities and railroads condemn and acquire land for their needs, including power projects.
The race to the courthouse was on. On June 26, Mr. Victor published a notice of his intention to condemn the eight-acre parcel where he hopes to build a 1,100-megawatt natural gas plant.
Within weeks, the city filed a pre-emptive suit on July 19 in Brooklyn Supreme Court to condemn the same piece of land as part of its effort to establish a 35-acre park in Williamsburg.
Both sides are predicting victory.
Posted by Marcia Oddi on August 20, 2005 10:56 AM
Posted to General Law Related