I am Brighton Town Supervisor Sandra Frankel, and I have served in this capacity for the past 14 years.
During that time, the Town of Brighton has rarely used eminent domain. When such action was necessary, it advanced a compelling public purpose such as a change in alignment for a road, completion of a drainage project to alleviate flooding conditions, and acquisition of land that was for sale, for use as a public park to implement a carefully studied comprehensive plan that involved thousands of hours of citizen participation, was the subject of public hearings and adopted by the town council, and was approved in a public bond referendum by four to one by the voters of the town.
Eminent domain for these classic public uses occurred only after efforts to reach a negotiated purchase or easement failed. The process ensures a fair market purchase price as determined by the court. From my point of view, eminent domain should only be used for compelling public purposes, and it should be an action of last resort, not a first line response.
There is no question that eminent domain is a scary prospect for homeowners who fear that they may lose their homes. People’s homes are precious to them and should not be subject to condemnation simply to shift the tax burden from residential to commercial use to increase property tax revenue, nor should it be used for gentrification that forces long-time residents of modest means out of lower income neighborhoods.
Eminent domain may be a necessary tool of last resort to implement an economic development plan for seriously blighted urban areas, as reported in the Oct. 5, 2005, Wall Street Journal. In this situation, New York State law must require public input from the community in the development of the underlying economic development plan and at public hearings prior to legislative approval of the plan, as well as during the eminent domain process.
I can assure residents of Brighton that we will not invoke the use of eminent domain simply to further economic development in the town. Other effective tools exist for private development, such as property tax abatements, incentive zoning, and other initiatives that can stimulate economic development without resorting to eminent domain.
In short, eminent domain can be a valuable tool for achieving vital public goals, but only when used as a last resort and with thorough public input into the process.
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