Eminent Domain Report

Rick Rayl and I will be speaking this Tuesday, March 19, at the International Right of Way Association (IRWA) Chapter 1 (Los Angeles) annual co-luncheon with the Appraisal Institute.  We'll provide an eminent domain "Year in Review," covering all the important court decisions from the past year.  To make it a bit interesting, we'll be coming up with some funny phrases, and we're hoping some of you will be able to guess what case we're talking about.  Rick promises there will be prizes....

The annual lunch between the IRWA and the Appraisal Institute is always a good one, so we hope you'll ...

On February 27, 2013, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed (pdf) the dismissal of a Fifth Amendment takings claim based on the finding that the claim was "not ripe."  The claim is unusual because it arose in the context of the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA).

Casitas Municipal Water District (Casitas) has a contract with the federal Bureau of Reclamation and a license with the State of California authorizing it to divert water for the Ventura River Project (Project).  The contract with the Bureau of Reclamation states that Casitas ...

According to an article in the Press Democrat, Rohnert Park OKs eminent domain at site of future hotel, restaurant, the Rohnert Park City Council recently adopted a resolution of necessity authorizing the use of eminent domain to acquire part of a property needed for a street widening project.  The street widening project is necessary accommodate increased traffic from the new Graton Resort & Casino, and it will require the partial acquisition of 22 properties.

The acquisition encompasses over 16,000 square feet from an undeveloped property that is slated to be improved ...

Before you get your hopes up, this is not a reference to "Opposites Attract" by Paula Abdul, and I will not be singing.  Rather, I am referring to the Montana Legislature's recent decision to repeal a two-year-old law that gave private power-line developers the authority to condemn private property.  The 2011 law was passed in order to override a state court decision prohibiting the use of eminent domain for private power-line development.  As reported in the Independent Record, supporters of the repeal effort believe "that the law gave unprecedented power to private companies to run ...

Earlier this week, in an unpublished decision (pdf), the Ninth Circuit affirmed the denial of compensation for construction that altered a point of access to an existing business.  (Wardany v. City of San Jacinto (9th Cir. 2013) 2013 U.S. App. LEXIS 3463.) 

For those readers who never forget a post, you probably recall that we discussed the district court's decision a couple of years ago.  (See Brad Kuhn's June 1, 2011 Blog Post.)  For the rest of us mortals, here is a quick summary.   The property owner operated a "One Stop Market" that vehicle traffic could access ...

The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) and the owner of Silveira Ranch are involved in an interesting valuation dispute stemming from Caltrans' acquisition of part of the ranchland needed for Highway 101 improvements.  According to an article in the Marin Independent Journal, Judge gives state a nod in Silveira ranch eminent domain case, the parties disagree on the property's highest and best use, and as a result, they are widely off on their valuation opinions.  Caltrans has offered the owner $1.8 million for the acquisition, while the owner is demanding $6 ...

California continues to move forward with more infrastructure improvement projects.  According to an article in the Daily Republic, Agency starts eminent domain proceedings for I-80/680 project, the Solano Transportation Authority and the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) are embarking on a $100 million-plus project to improve traffic flow near the Interstates 80 and 680 interchange.  The project includes widening the freeway and constructing new on-ramps at the Green Valley Road interchange.

In order to move forward with project construction ...

For all you Southern California right-of-way folks, the next few weeks have quite a bit in store.  Here's what's going on in the local International Right of Way Association (IRWA) Chapters:

• IRWA Chapter 57 Meeting (2/6/13):  This Wednesday, February 6, IRWA Chapter 57 (Inland Empire) will be hosting its monthly luncheon at the Old Spaghetti Factory in Riverside.  The guest speaker is Mike Mason, MAI, from Overland, Pacific & Cutler.  Mike is a well-known eminent domain appraiser in Southern California, and his presentation is titled, "How Appraisers Lie Without ...

In Lost Tree Village Corporation v. United States, the Federal Circuit addressed this question head on, concluding, to the surprise of no one, that the answer will largely depend upon the unique facts in each case. 

The question arose because the Army Corps of Engineers denied Lost Tree Village Corporation (Lost Tree), a commercial and real estate developer, a permit to fill wetlands on a 4.99 acre plat.  The 4.99 acre plat (Plat 57), along with one other plat (Plat 55) and some scattered wetlands, were holdovers from various properties totaling ...

Given how much publicity the proposal to condemn underwater mortgages received when it first appeared last summer, I suppose it's not surprising that San Bernardino's decision last week not to move forward has also garnered a lot of attention.  Still, it's been hard to keep up with the many articles on the subject these past few days.

If you're trying to keep up as well, here are a number of pieces published over the last few days:

• A January 25 article by Erin Coe on Law360 entitled Calif. County's Halted Mortgage Seizure Plan May Deter Others, that focuses on the question of whether San ...