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Archive | Condemnation

July 27, 2023

The Public Trust Doctrine in New York. A Park Is Not A Park Unless It’s Not.

  In 2015, New York’s highest court, the Court of Appeals, decided Matter of Glick v Harvey.[1]  The appeals court affirmed the reversal of a lower court order which enjoined New York University from beginning any construction in connection with its expansion project that would result in any alienation of three parcels of land found by the Court to be public parkland, unless and until the State Legislature authorizes the alienation of any parkland to be impacted by the project.  The decision itself provides very little factual information.  According to… read more

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Posted in Condemnation, Parkland, Public Trust Doctrine, Uncategorized
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May 2, 2023

Valuing the Special Purpose Property

          On occasion, one will encounter a property which is so unusual that it cannot be valued by the comparable sales (or market data approach) or by capitalization of income.  When that happens, the cost approach will be utilized.           In the cost approach, an appraiser values the property premised on the value of the land and then adds what it would cost to build a new structure.  The value is based on reproduction costs less observed depreciation.  All increment costs are also considered and added to the value.  The… read more

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Posted in Condemnation, Cost Approach, Special Purpose
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April 11, 2023

Condemnation to Build Slave Quarters

Gwinnett County, located in the North Central portion of Georgia and part of the metropolitan area of Atlanta, has backed down from the proposed condemnation of the “Promised Land” from a Black family. The Promised Land community was a plantation with about two dozen slaves prior to the Civil War. The land is owned by the descendants of freed slaves who once worked on a plantation on the same property. It was then owned by Thomas Maguire. “During the Civil War, Sherman’s troops burned this whole town, but he didn’t… read more

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Posted in Black Ownership, Condemnation, Historical Park
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April 4, 2023

Getting The Shaft

Daniel F. Sciannameo, MAI, one of New York City’s best appraisers and a Staten Island resident, brought an article published in the Staten Island Advance to my attention.  The article states that Staten Island residents have had to pay what amounted to a monthly tax to New York City for a subway line that was never built. The article written by Tom Wrobleski provides the history of the train line.  He wrote, “As originally conceived in the 1920s, the train line would have run from St. George to Mariners Harbor,… read more

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Posted in Abandonment of Project, Condemnation, Staten Island Subway
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March 30, 2023

Opposition to the Summit Pipeline

In our last blog, “We Don’t Care What the Stinking Pipeline Carries,” March 21, 2023, we reported on the Summit Pipeline which would carry millions of tons of carbon dioxide from ethanol plants to be injected into underground rock formations.  The 2,000-mile pipeline would carry carbon dioxide across five states to underground storage in North Dakota. There has been a lot of opposition to the project from property owners and other groups.  Farmers have concerns about what the gas will do to the soil and water.  Another concern is that… read more

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Posted in Carbon Dioxide Pipeline, Condemnation, Summit Pipeline
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