An Introduction to Eminent Domain and its Application in the City of Detroit
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Authors
Hyman, Matt
Issue Date
1995
Type
Thesis
Language
en_US
Keywords
Alternative Title
Abstract
Eminent domain is defined most succinctly as "the power of the sovereign
to take property for the public use without the owner's consent." This power has
been the subject of heated national debate concerning how much the right of
Government may infringe upon the right of individual citizens. The basic question
is "when and under what conditions may a municipality (be it city, township or
state) exercise eminent domain legally?" A recent example of Detroit using
eminent domain is in the acquiring and assembling of parcels of land to
accommodate a new subdivision in the Jefferson-Chalmers neighborhood. An
earlier, more notorious acquisition by the City of Detroit, of 465 acres in the
Poletown neighborhood to accommodate a new General Motors assembly plant, is
another example of the City exercising the power of eminent domain. There are
some apparent similarities between these two examples, but there also are some
not-so-apparent differences. Questions that this essay will consider are: where did
the authority of eminent domain originate from, and what constraints are put upon
the Government's right to exercise eminent domain? What are some of the issues
that the sovereign must confront before using the power of eminent domain? Did
the Poletown taking represent a valid use of eminent domain? Was the City's use
of eminent domain for the new subdivision responsible? The central argument is
that the Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly Center (as G.M. executives prefer to call it)
did not constitute a legitimate excuse to demolish a neighborhood.
What we [the City of Detroit] are doing on the riverfront and in other
large development is not necessarily of benefit to Detroit... The
contrast between the public dollar investment downtown and the tax
abatement for General Motors as opposed to the neighborhoods and
the money we're putting into them is a story in itself. This essay will address this comparison. Victoria Park a new housing
development in the city will be used as a point of comparison.
Description
ii, 54 p.
Citation
Publisher
Kalamazoo, Mich. : Kalamazoo College.
License
U.S. copyright laws protect this material. Commercial use or distribution of this material is not permitted without prior written permission of the copyright holder. All rights reserved.