“Sustainability,” “smart growth” and “transit-oriented development” are the catchwords du jour these days in Honolulu, as we anticipate the $4B+ fixed guideway mass transit project.  But from the San Francisco Chronicle comes this “cautionary tale” of a Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) transit village gone. . .not quite right:

The basic moves are great: Three and four-story buildings filled with apartments and retail space are on busy El Camino Real instead of somewhere on the region’s outskirts. There’s a BART station next door, and 70 of the 361 apartments are reserved for lower-income residents. There’s even a Trader Joe’s, a grocery chain of cultlike status.

But this showcase of so-called smart growth comes packaged in the most generic structures imaginable, an inept cross between Stanford University and Orange County. The best thing about Solaire is that, with luck, it will be a wake-up call to other cities  —  reminding them

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Continue Reading ▪ Designing “Transit Villages” in Honolulu’s Rail Project

Is it just me, or is Honolulu’s proposed rail system — whoops, sorry, “fixed guideway” — beginning to look like the camel in the timeworn cliche?  The city council has approved a transit system, while leaving decisions about the actual location of the route, and whether the system will be rail or something else, until later (but the tax to pay for a portion of the $4B+ cost will be charged starting 1/1/2007). 

On Friday, the council first delayed the final vote on the transit system’s footprint in order to consider adding another section, then reconsidered the delay and decided it would vote, then voted 7-2 in favor of the system, whatever it might be.  The delay was suggested in order to consider adding another section to the line, which would have resulted in the need to take even more private property by eminent domain. 

While there may…

Continue Reading ▪ A Camel is a Horse Designed by Committee

As reported here, and blogged about here, Susette Kelo, the lead petitioner in 2005’s infamous Kelo case, has sent a holiday greeting card to her tormentors that is anything but friendly: 

The text, accompanying a sparkling, snowy image of Kelo’s iconic pink house in the Fort Trumbull neighborhood, reads, in its entirety:

Here is my house that you did take
From me to you, this spell I make
Your houses, your homes
Your family, your friends
May they live in misery
That never ends.
I curse you all
May you rot in hell
To each of you
I send this spell
For the rest of your lives
I wish you ill
I send this now
By the power of will

The recipients, “some 30 or so current and former members of the City Council and New London Development Corp.” had varying reactions, from calling it “childish” because the…

Continue Reading ▪ Should Property Owners be Grateful Their Property is Condemned?

While much of the public’s attention on the Honolulu City Council’s upcoming vote on the proposed mass transit system focuses on the choice between rail or bus, and the location of the route, another issue — eminent domain — is beginning to surface. 

In a story posted here (video included), Honolulu’s mayor acknowledges the impact of the use of eminent domain on property owners in the path of the rail lines, but suggests they “wait and see” before they react:

As the route nears town, more properties will see partial easements along road frontages, in addition to some full buyouts.

“As we come into town, it’s going to be a little tricky,” said Mayor Mufi Hannemann. “We’re going to run into those problems, and rightfully so. We’re going to run into landowners who say, ‘That’s my land. I don’t want it for rail. I’ll take you to court.’ ”

Robert Thomas, a Honolulu eminent domain attorney, says he’s already heard from property owners worried they may be in the way and vowing to fight if so. Governments have power to force sales when owners resist.

“The city has an obligation to the taxpayer to not overpay, so it will generally come in with the lowest possible figure that reason can bear,” Thomas said.

State law provides for a jury trial to settle price disputes.

“I would say to people who may be concerned, we appreciate your concern, but why don’t you just wait to see what actually comes out,” Hannemann said of the pending transit route.

The Mayor correctly points out that very few owners whose property is targeted by condemnation will be happy.  When asked to sacrifice their family home or a lifetime of work establishing a business, a property owner cannot be faulted for objecting.  On that point, the Mayor is 100% correct. 

However, I wish I could agree with the Mayor’s suggestion that potentially affected property owners “wait and see” whether the City is coming after their land, home, or business, and if the City’s initial take-it-or-leave-it offers will adequately compensate those who are forced to give up their property.  History and experience tell us that property owners who do not passively wait for the eminent domain summons to arrive, and who actively question the government’s valuation of their property, are more likely to obtain compensation for their property that they consider just.

    Continue Reading ▪ Eminent Domain and the Holy Rail