The post ‘Little Pink House’ Author Jeff Benedict Tells Story of Kelo Eminent Domain Case in Kansas City appeared first on Show-Me Institute.

New York’s highest court is set to hear arguments Wednesday in a case that will decide whether the state government can lawfully seize private property for a development company.

The story is very familiar, although the actors are different. This time, the New York State Urban Development Corp., a government agency, assumes the role previously played by the city of New London, Conn. A chorus of concerned land owners reprise the role of Susette Kelo, the woman in the little pink house. Forest City Ratner Cos. replaces the New London Development Corporation in the role of the developer, and instead of building a Pfizer research complex, it plans to build an NBA stadium in downtown Brooklyn.

Stay tuned! If the Court of Appeals in Albany sides with the property owners and introduces additional limits on eminent domain, there will be a happy ending. If the court sides with the developers, there will be an unhappy ending, as there was in New London. This will mean that, in addition to other negative consequences, the property owners will lose their homes and the city will lose money on the project.

The city’s Independent Budget Office said in a report last month that the arena would cost the city nearly $170 million, nearly $40 million more in spending than it would generate in tax revenues.

Eminent domain is not reserved for East Coast cities like New York and New London — it’s a pukka issue here in Missouri, too. Last month, the Show-Me Institute released a study of the expansion of eminent domain in Missouri, and it also hosted Jeff Benedict to speak about the eminent domain abuse that occurred in the Kelo v. New London Supreme Court case.

The post More Eminent Domain Courtroom Drama appeared first on Show-Me Institute.

I’ve also posted it below, for your convenience. This playlist consists of seven separate parts. After each individual part has finished playing, the playlist should automatically load the subsequent part until the sequence has finished. You may also choose to view any individual part on its own:

Part 1 (10:00) | Part 2 (10:03) | Part 3 (9:47) | Part 4 (10:01) | Part 5 (9:59) | Part 6 (10:00) | Part 7 (5:58)

The post “Little Pink House” Author Jeff Benedict Tells Story of Infamous Kelo Eminent Domain Case appeared first on Show-Me Institute.

Many people at these events asked whatever became of the planned development once the city won the case. Did they ever build the luxury hotels and condominiums, or the high-end retail shopping establishments that were promised? New London’s local newspaper, The Day, has produced a video that lets you see for yourself how the development is faring, four years after Mrs. Kelo’s neighborhood was leveled. I hope the city is satisfied with the Fort Trumbull neighborhood’s new residents.

The post For All Those Who Were Wondering … appeared first on Show-Me Institute.

While Susette Kelo’s case is well-known nationally, a new Show-Me Institute policy study also brings to light eminent domain abuses in Missouri. “Gradual and Silent Encroachments: How the Missouri Supreme Court Expanded the Power of Eminent Domain,” by Timothy Sandefur, a senior staff attorney at the Pacific Legal Foundation, tackles recent cases that have set back the constitutional rights of Missourians. Though this state once had one of the strongest constitutional provisions to protect home and business owners against eminent domain, new precedents by the Supreme Court have eroded that protection.

As Policy Pulse and Show-Me Daily continue to report, eminent domain is still a very pertinent issue in Missouri.

Constitution Day serves as a great reminder that some of the founding ideals of the country, like the respect of one’s own private property, still need to be protected.

The post Constitution Day and Eminent Domain Lessons appeared first on Show-Me Institute.