"I couldn't possibly fail to disagree with you less."
14 June 2007Blight refractionsIn Missouri, at least, saying it's so doesn't make it so:
The Missouri Supreme Court narrowed the bounds of eminent domain Tuesday in rejecting the Centene Plaza plan for downtown Clayton and raising the bar for taking private property.
The upscale city failed to prove that property in the 7700 block of Forsyth Boulevard was blighted, the judges ruled in a 6-1 decision favoring landowners who fought condemnation. Under the ruling, developers who seek to use condemnation to take land from other private owners will have to give proof that the property is not only old or of obsolete design but that it impacts health and safety as well.
This is very good news for property owners. Now they cannot be thrown out for owning uncool buildings or not producing the maximum level of revenue possible (at least, not until another court determines that "impacts health and safety" means "doesn't provide sales tax revenue that funds local EMT services").
Given lawmakers' ability to find justification for damn near anything in the Constitution's Commerce clause, I am not entirely reassured. Posted at 6:52 AM to Political Science FictionGrowing dope in your backyard for personal consumption? Commerce. Eating a ham sandwich on your porch? Commerce. The Friday column Jacob Sullum wrote at home in his study? Definitely commerce. With the possible exception of beating women and bringing guns to school, in fact, commerce, like God, is omnipresent and (by way of empowering Congress) omnipotent. All hail commerce. |