About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

38 Fordham Urb. L.J. 1119 (2010-2011)
The Use and Abuse of Blight in Eminent Domain

handle is hein.journals/frdurb38 and id is 1127 raw text is: THE USE AND ABUSE OF BLIGHT IN EMINENT DOMAIN Martin E. Gold & Lynne B. Sagalyn* Introduction ............................................................................................. 1119 I. Blight Determinations: More Facilitating Than Limiting ................. 1121 II. The H ierarchy of U ses ..................................................................... 1128 Ill. Blight and Public Purpose in Columbia's Expansion in M anhattanville .............................................................................. 1143 IV . A ttem pted R eform s ........................................................................ 1150 V . Conflicting Political Forces ............................................................. 1160 VI. Creating Better Safeguards ............................................................. 1165 C onclusion ............................................................................................... 1173 INTRODUCTION Blight findings have functioned as a cornerstone for condemnation tak- ings since the severe urban decline in the middle of the twentieth century prompted governments at every level, throughout the country, to actively intervene in the real estate market. Elements of blight, and then the term itself, became a foundational basis for this governmental intervention. But using blight as a basis for that intervention has become increasingly con- troversial as its application has moved from slum clearance to urban rede- velopment, then to economic development projects, and on to revenue en- hancing projects-all the while its definition expanded. Immediately following the outcry over the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Kelo v. City of New London,' homeowners, business activists, and state politicians, or- * Martin E. Gold is a partner at Sidley Austin LLP, an Adjunct Professor of Real Estate De- velopment at Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preserva- tion, and formerly served as New York City's Director of Corporate Law in the New York City Law Department. Lynne B. Sagalyn is the Earle W. Kazis & Benjamin Schore Profes- sor of Real Estate at Columbia University Graduate School of Business. 1. 545 U.S. 469 (2005). In Kelo, the city of New London, acting through its develop- ment agency, approved a development plan to revitalize its ailing economy and initiated condemnation proceedings against owners of property (residential) that refused to sell. The Supreme Court said the City could not take petitioners' land simply to confer a private bene- fit on a particular private party, but that the takings in this case did not benefit a particular class of identifiable individuals. The City, it observed, was trying to coordinate a variety 1119

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Purchase Access

Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most