Eminent domain may come easier
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By Scott Schwebke
Standard-Examiner staff
sschwebke@standard.net
City officials say Ogden River Project will benefit if bill passes
OGDEN -- It may be easier for the city to acquire private property for the long-awaited Ogden River Project if the state Legislature approves a bill restoring eminent domain as a tool to tackle urban blight.
House Bill 365 would allow cities and towns to use eminent domain if petitioned by 75 percent of property owners with at least 50 percent of the land value within an urban-renewal project area.
"It would definitely help the river project," Ogden Community and Economic Development Director Dave Harmer said of the bill's potential impact. "We would like to see it pass."
The bill, sponsored by Rep. Stephen Urquhart, R-St. George, is awaiting a final reading by the House and, if approved, will be forwarded to the Senate.
The measure is being pushed by the Utah League of Cities and Towns with support from several municipalities including Ogden, said Mark Johnson, the city's management services director.
"There are a lot of cities that have (blighted) urban downtown areas that need help," he said.
Dorothy Littrell, an Ogden property owner and longtime opponent of eminent domain for business development, said House Bill 365 shouldn't have been introduced. "The Constitution provides that eminent domain is used for public use and certain governmental needs and not for private developers or individuals," she said.
Two years ago, the Legislature approved Senate Bill 184, which eliminated the ability of municipalities to use eminent domain to redevelop blighted areas for economic development.
The bill effectively killed a plan for the construction of a 206,000-square-foot Wal-Mart Supercenter on Wall Avenue between 21st and 22nd streets. At the time, the Ogden Redevelopment Agency had options to purchase a majority of the 98 parcels needed to build the store, but was unable to reach agreements with a few property owners who refused to sell.
There is no indication the Wal-Mart project would be revived if House Bill 365 is approved, Harmer said.
However, it could give the RDA a valuable tool to acquire parcels in the final phases of the river project if a few stubborn landowners refuse to sell and try to drive up purchase prices, he said. The three-phase river project has been on the drawing board since 2001 and is slated to include about 60 acres along the Ogden River from Washington Boulevard west to Wall Avenue.
The RDA has purchased all 40 parcels in the project's first phase, encompassing about 12 acres that extend from 20th Street north to the Ogden River, between Washington Boulevard and Grant Avenue. The RDA is attempting to acquire purchase options for parcels in the final two phases.
In addition to the property owner petition process, House Bill 365 contains other safeguards against potential eminent domain abuse, Johnson said. For example, a two-thirds vote from an RDA board would be required before property could be condemned, he said. Previously, only a simple majority vote was needed.
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