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An Ordinance Adding New Sections to the Code of the City of Colorado Springs Pertaining to Exercise of and Restrictions Upon the Use of the Power of Eminent Domain to Acquire Property
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Summary: The proposed ordinance will limit the use of City Council's powers of eminent domain to the acquisition of property only for traditional public uses such as the acquisition of land rights for public streets and highways and other traditional public facilities, such as a water facility.
It also spells out how and when the public use of "eliminating blight" can be used, and allows eminent domain for the use of "abandoned property," when stringent conditions are met.
In cases where a public purpose is established, a thorough public process is defined in which owners of property or property interests are afforded the benefit of a standard, public process and allowed to state their case publicly. In the case of blight designation, property owners are afforded the opportunity to remedy the specific conditions for which their property has been designated as blighted.
Previous Council Action: At the January 13, 2014 Council Work Session meeting, Council directed City Attorney staff to work with me on the ordinance.
Background: In 2005, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Kelo vs. the City of New London that local governments can use eminent domain to acquire private property for private development if government officials determine that the new private development would benefit the public. With this ruling and additional interpretation of the Fifth Amendment of the Constitution, the U.S. Supreme Court effectively allows local government to take private property through eminent domain for the benefit of another private party for the development of a commercial use, if the new use is projected to generate a secondary public benefit. It should be noted, though, that the Supreme Court included this statement to their opinion: "We emphasize that nothing in our opinion...
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