Had the U.S. Supreme Court's eminent domain decision last week come a year earlier, it might have affected the proposed Cityscapes/events center debate in Fargo.
It still might.
By a 5-4 vote, the high court said the city of New London, Conn., could take property from homeowners who were resisting a redevelopment project in a blighted neighborhood. The city can move ahead to acquire the properties and turn the tract over to a private developer who will build new residences, a hotel and other upscale amenities.
The court majority concluded the public good - including expansion of New London's tax base - conformed to the "takings clause" of the U.S. Constitution. It's the so-called eminent domain power of governments whereby private property can be condemned and the owners compensated for their loss.
If the description of the New London situation seems familiar, it should. One of the core arguments in favor of the Cityscapes/events center proposal in downtown Fargo was expansion of the tax base by removing "blighted" properties and replacing them with a public arena and an upscale office/residential building. Proponents (and city officials) calculated property tax revenue would rise from about $57,000 a year to at least $800,000. They said the development would revitalize a full block in the heart of downtown. They said the private/public development would stimulate small business investment and attract more people to downtown.
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The voters of Fargo didn't buy it. They overwhelmingly rejected the sales tax-funded public arena part of the proposal, which effectively scuttled the entire project.
One of the concerns raised by opponents of the Fargo proposal was the pending New London case. They assumed the ruling would go against the city, which, they believed, would have made it more difficult for Fargo to proceed with its project. For example, had voters approved the project, at least one and possibly more business owners on the project block were ready to fight to keep their property.
But the court tipped the other way, which seems to mean that Fargo (or any other government) can take private property and transfer it to another private owner if the purpose is for the greater good of the community.
While we find the court's expanded definition of "public good" troubling, a precedent has been set. Rest assured, local governments across the nation are assessing their options for redevelopment in light of the the New London ruling.
Because of the vote against the downtown project, it's unlikely Fargo commissioners will revisit the Cityscapes/events center anytime soon. But the newly expanded power of eminent domain is a potent tool for local governments bent on redevelopment. It won't be Cityscapes, but it might be a new library or a performing arts center or a hotel or a condominium. The court has made it easier for cities to clear out the old to make way for the new. That should make owners of the old very nervous.
Forum editorials represent the opinion of Forum management and the newspaper's Editorial Board.
