City must not let eminent domain blight its reputation
“One problem is that the City Council is too blinded by promises of high-end shops and movie theaters to see that this could do harm to the city’s reputation. How many businesses looking to relocate are going to pick a city that steals a company’s private property? A company might ask, “If I move my business to Fort Collins, in 20 or 30 years, are they going to take my property when someone offers them something shiny and new?”
Sears has been an upstanding property owner for 40 years, paying taxes and employing citizens. We repay them by using heavy-handed tactics to steal their property. We are threatening to violate a company’s freedom to do business and own private property. A company that supported our troops by paying the difference between deployed soldiers’ military salaries and the salaries they earned at Sears. They also continued deployed soldiers’ medical benefits and life insurance policies. As an Army vteran, this is a company I can support and fight for.
What citizens need to think of is what happens when your house is sitting in the way of a shiny new project that catches the eye of the Urban Renewal Authority or City Council. Imagine what they could do to you if they can trample a billion-dollar company’s property rights.”
Payne, Brian. The Coloradoan 29 January 2013.