Pantagraph.com | News | No appeal made in Normal eminent domain case

Note: All views and opinions expressed in reader comments are solely those of the individual submitting the comment, and not those of the Pantagraph or its staff.

Paul Kinsella wrote on Jun 29, 2006 9:35 PM:

" I did not say they put money in each others pocket in public. It is obvious. Read the paper. Eminent Domain is to include all involved parties involved. Not Developers and Politicians, and the Land owner when they get around to it. If you thin corruption does not exsists you are mistaken. There is a push on for bio fuels from corn and soybeans, Look at the Eastside and Westside as Realtors make farmland disappear like the Rain Forest. Meanwhile they let the old parts of town fall into ruin. Most citizens were against the Coliseum. Politicians were voted in to act as representatives of the majority. That is my opinion. Don't acuse me of Acusations after your are done singing Kumbaya. I take it you are a politician or developer. Maybe when they put a road through your living room, you will change your mind. Land of the Free. Heard of freedom of speech? It is in granite at the County museum. You know where the curator lives in a Taxpayer paid home free and coincidently is the Normal Mayor's Brother. Hmmmmmm! "

feelgood wrote on Jun 29, 2006 7:18 PM:

" As in the recent New London, Conn. case: the Supremes ruled that the City could take the land of seven defendents for use as a shopping mall and other "unspecified redevelopment". In Lakewood, Ohio, homes not having central heating or a least 3 bedrooms were condemned and the property taken over by the city. In the 1980's, at the behest of General Motors, in a Detroit neighborhood, 4200 citizens' homes were destroyed along with 600 businesses, several schools and a hospital. GM never delivered on it's promise to create 6500 jobs: while the taxpayers were stuck with an additional 300 million in local, state and federal subsidies to GM. Just a few examples for those who think eminent domain is being used appropriately under the rubric of "public works." And, by the way, it was the liberal wing of the Supreme Court which wrote the majority opinion in the most recent New London, Conn. case. The libs like the idea of the City being able to grab land for use as low cost housing. And consider Adam Smith's warning regarding business owner's wishes to guide economic policy. "

To: To T; wrote on Jun 29, 2006 6:21 PM:

" Yep I agree with you. They are very haphazard in the performance of their duties. The human (?) who logs in posts on the weekend does even worse. They'll probably try to say that your ISP dropped a packet, and that they never receive the comments. I think they need to pay more than $6.92 and hire some more qualified people. Maybe CIOP will help out here?!?!?! "

To T: wrote on Jun 29, 2006 3:40 PM:

" The Pantagraph is being very unfair in their post screening process. I made a comment on another post and because I said I thought people were being idiots, my post got thrown out. Gee, that doesn't seem quite as bad as the accuzations being made by Paul Kinsella and the "scr*w you" comment made by normalguy. Bet this post will be thrown out too since I said something derrogatory about The Pantagraph. "

Developers own the Normal Govt. wrote on Jun 29, 2006 1:20 PM:

" As some of you may know, Normal has a public library. This library has a very small parking lot because the city gave most of the library parking to build a bank. There is a large parking lot next to the library owned by Young America, but the city won't dare try to take it. So, moms with young kids have to dodge the traffic on College Ave. Better to risk the life of a child than upset one of the local developers. "

Ok wrote on Jun 29, 2006 1:01 PM:

" My dad is dealing with eminent domain right now on his property handed down from my grandfather. This is our family land, and the government can give us what they want not always top dollar. My dad should be able to sell his land to the person of his choice, or developer. They can put a hold on the land, and if a person comes along and wants to put in a subdivision and buy the land for really good money, but my dad cant sell it, because they are going to put in a highway, or whatever the govt wants. They can hold it for up to 8 years, that is what they are trying to do now. Not always fair. "

Brian wrote on Jun 29, 2006 12:44 PM:

" Hmmm....2 acres of UNDEVELOPED farm land for $99,500. Show me a farmer who thinks that's a bad deal and I'll show you a very dumb farmer. Nearly $50,000 an acre is VERY generous. Gee, why don't I feel sorry for Elmer? Maybe because he's sitting on a gold mine, knows it, thinks nothing of demanding EVERY taxpayer dollar allowable for the land and expects those same taxpayers he's attempting to rip off to feel sorry for him. Whaaaaa...sniff sniff. "

Don wrote on Jun 29, 2006 10:36 AM:

" Without eminent domain, the owners of this land could have demanded 1 million dollars for their 2 acre plot. This money would have to come from you and me. There goes your stoplight. The government (us) is required to pay a fair price. The reality is that we usually pay top dollar. As we did in this case. We all enjoy safe roads and city services like gas, electric and water thanks to eminent domain. To Good, Get real. "

The Takings Clause wrote on Jun 29, 2006 10:25 AM:

" "Private property shall not be taken for a public use, without just compensation." It's not like this is a new law. It has been this way for 200 years. They can take it they just have to pay for it, which they do. "

live in north Normal wrote on Jun 29, 2006 10:19 AM:

" I wish it didn't have to come down to the government taking away these people's land in order to fix the problem. I think the privilege is being abused but traffic at the Towanda/Shelbourne intersection is really ridiculous. Something tells me those of you crying government conspiracy don't have to use that intersection at all, if ever. Did you read the part where they're being given almost $100K for the property? Unless they've got dead relatives buried there, it seems fair to me. If they get that much they'll be a lot closer to competing with the "millionaire's social club of the town of Normal" than any of us. "

to Paul Kinsella wrote on Jun 29, 2006 10:09 AM:

" So are you officially accusing the Bloomington, Normal, and County boards of having taken cash in exchange for votes? Pantagraph, and you have no problem screening this statement and republishing it here? Opinion is one thing, that it an obvious accusation. "

Government wrote on Jun 29, 2006 9:20 AM:

" This country was established because people thought too much government was a bad thing. What is the difference between what our government has now become and England in the late 1700s? Personal rights are being taken away every day and noone seems to care. Eminent Domain may be necessary in EXTREME cases but there were other solutions to this problem. Re:Good, I really hope they take away your land someday for a road and then you can say "aw Gee thats ok, they really needed to put that here." "

DwightH wrote on Jun 29, 2006 9:08 AM:

" the real issues here are freedom, liberty, and choice. If I want to buy property, I negotiate w/the owner. The Govt however, uses emminent domain & other rules as intimidation to the public. Of course, anyone can do good work w/millions of other people's money. My real question is, when will the citizenry realize that the answer is to elect politicians that will recognize the rights of the individual. Maybe I'll run for office. "

Kaltgift wrote on Jun 29, 2006 8:43 AM:

" Boy, there are some bitter people here. I can understand that, but the sad truth is we're not an agrarian society anymore. The economy won't support as many farms as it used to and farms will continue to be bought up. You don't have to like it, but you'll be a lot less miserable if you roll with it and use it as an opportunity. Not much of a consulation, but there it is. "

Thomas in the hole wrote on Jun 29, 2006 8:36 AM:

" Ever since we moved the location of the hole we work in, my commute has been much smoother. However, that's not what we're talking about here. I do agree that there needs to be a light at the intersection of Towanda and Shelbourne. If you get stuck there at the wrong time of night, it's an endless stream of fools as no one can seem to figure out a four way stop. I also think something needs to be done with the two sections of Raab Rd to either connect them or get some way where they can go through. Raab ends a bit east of Towanda and Raab then it picks back up behind Greenbriar subdivision. It's a bit of a mess...but I do believe this article is a step in the right direction. Progress isn't always easy or fair, but it's for the good of the community!!!! "

Hyperbole anyone? wrote on Jun 29, 2006 8:30 AM:

" The development in this area is not the result of eminent domain. Eagle's Landing and Sam's Club happened because the owner's of the land chose to sell it to developers. The government had nothing to do with that. With development comes roads. Don't like it, don't blame the government, they're just trying to solve problems that arise afterwords, like traffic. Blame the farmer that decided to sell to developers in the first place. "

To Good wrote on Jun 29, 2006 8:26 AM:

" State Farm currently operates 24x7 with three shifts a day. As for your Internet, there is no impact to your Internet connections because of State Farm...they do not use the same bandwidth that B-N residents use. Not sure the relavance of your comments to this issue, but wanted to give you some information. "

To: Good wrote on Jun 29, 2006 8:16 AM:

" Wait until it's your property and see how you feel. "

to normalguy wrote on Jun 29, 2006 8:14 AM:

" I'm not a lawyer but I did check out Article III, Section II of the Constitition. It explicitly says the courts have the power to decide in cases of land claims between citizens and states. And the legal precidence in eminent domain claims by communities for public works is long. Also, Schaefer originally asked for $100,000 for his 2 acres of land. He's getting $99,500. That's not exactly a raw deal. "

Agree wrote on Jun 29, 2006 8:09 AM:

" Good is totally correct. I have to go through that intersection at Towanda and Shelbourne at least 4 times a day. That is the worst intersection in this town. Just try to drive throught it between 4:30 pm and 6:00 pm any weekday. The line of traffic heading Northbound is backed up to the overpass. TOTALLY RIDICULOUS!!! "

Eminent Domain Power wrote on Jun 29, 2006 8:04 AM:

" Local government uses eminent domain as a power tool to take away property owners rights. Bloomington is a good example of this abuse. You either do it their way or they take your property. Maybe someday if these so called government leaders are faced with this abuse they will know the feeling. Being fair about eminent domain is one issue but using it as a take it or leave situation is another!! "

IMHO wrote on Jun 29, 2006 8:02 AM:

" Hershey needs to be extended across the tracks to old Route 66. That would reduce traffic around the new Normal High School by allowing traffic from the North-East to get to the business district WITHOUT having to deal with the Shellborne/Towanda mess. "

Eminent Domain wrote on Jun 29, 2006 7:50 AM:

" Is evil!!! More land taken away by force just so a few people don't have to drive a little out of thier way to get to Sam's. I wish the Schaefers would appeal, we all need to do everything we can against government taking away our land, including force if needs be. Viva La Revolution! "

To Good wrote on Jun 29, 2006 7:41 AM:

" Instead of taking more land how about State Farm putting their employees on rotating shifts. You know work a week of 8 -4, then a week of 4-12, then a week of 12-8. It would relieve the congestion on the roads, show State Farm employees what a real job is like, and they would also have faster internet connections on the midnight shift when they are screwing around at work instead of clogging the internet during the day. "

Leland wrote on Jun 29, 2006 7:34 AM:

" While I understand eminate domain in the case of a government entity paying fair market value for land to be used for public access, as in the case of roads, I am animately opposed to doing what is being done on the east coast where private developers are taking private property to make millions, perhaps billions off of other people's property. I really have to wonder how much money is going into elected official's pockets to do this. This activity is NOT what the eminate domain laws were written for. "

Ruby Ridge wrote on Jun 29, 2006 7:24 AM:

" This family "owned the land",(if thats still possible under our government), long before our local swindlers, I mean developers, initiated Eagle's Landing Subdivision. Basic Constitutional Rights are being taken away and most people don't seem to care. Remember the land grab by Normal to benefit the Bank of Illinois. People need to pull their collective heads out of their A@@es, read a book by James Bovard, and take back our government. "

To normal guy wrote on Jun 29, 2006 7:24 AM:

" Ever heard of.......Anger Management...yes.. you seem to need it. "

T wrote on Jun 29, 2006 7:16 AM:

" I wonder why the pantagraph allows comments like normal guy on here. Eminent domain has been around for a long time. My parents experienced that when 80-94 went through Northern Indiana "

Paul Kinsella wrote on Jun 29, 2006 7:03 AM:

" Hi Elmer. The Corruption between the Bloomington, Normal, and the County is undending. Eminent domain is two words meaning they can do what ever they want to anyone they want. The developers line the pockets of Politicians with cash and favors and they think the public is to stupid to see. Look at all the Sewer Pump Stations that all taxpayers have to pay for because of greed. The only comfort we have is that they will meet in Hell when they die. God help us! "

Good wrote on Jun 29, 2006 5:46 AM:

" I applaud the government for getting involved. Now, eminent domain needs to be established at the corner of Towanda and Shellbourne. That 4 way stop is ridiculous and needs to have a stoplight. "

normalguy wrote on Jun 29, 2006 1:24 AM:

" another example of the government violating the constitution. we are no longer free. every year, the government takes away more and more of our rights and freedoms. we can't do anything about it either. so to the government - screw you. BURN "

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