EMINENT DOMAIN

Judgements have recently been issued in Superior Court cases at which Mr. O'Neil provided appraisal testimony regarding appraisals completed for clients who had properties taken by eminent domain.  In New Milford, in the Candlewood Valley Country Club case, the Connecticut Department of Transportation executed a partial take in conjunction with highway widening of Route 7.  In that case the Judge made a substantial increase in the damage award to the property owner.  In the matter of the Arcade Hotel in Downtown Bridgeport, The Bridgeport Economic Development Corporation had condemned the mixed use retail and hotel property in its entirety.  In that case the Judge made a modest increase in the damage award to the property owner.

The media coverage of the Supreme Court's Kelo decision on the use of eminent domain for economic development projects certainly portrayed the process as arbitrary and capricious.  Eminent domain is a necessary tool for government to accomplish numerous publicly endorsed improvement programs and the procedures to put such endorsements in place provides numerous opportunities for citizen participation and safeguards against the tyranny of the majority.

A variety of corrective measures are now under consideration.  One of the limits of "just compensation" is that historically it has been considered the same as the market value of a property, which is the price paid between willing buyers and willing sellers.  Obviously, in an eminent domain situation there is often not a willing seller.  There is no "pain and suffering" component to this compensation and for business properties consideration of lost profits is specifically excluded.  Such considerations might provide a more just compensation to homeownwers such as the New London plaintiffs.  On the other hand, the taxpayer would be exposed to the risk of excessive payments to assemble such sites.