Arnie’s Dog House to stay put in Munster

“The Munster Redevelopment Commission on Monday voted 4-0 to dismiss eminent domain proceedings filed in 2012 to acquire the property at 8125 Calumet Ave. owned by Gardner and Joy Arnold. The town initiated the proceedings in an attempt to add more public parking north of the Munster Shops.

The cost of continuing the proceedings outweighed the value of adding public parking, Town Attorney Eugene Feingold said before the vote.

Since the time negotiations first began with the Arnolds in 2010, the value of the land where Arnie’s Dog House sits has increased substantially, Feingold said. Part of the reason for the change is the completion of the Munster Shops, he said.

The Arnolds put the value of the property at $500,000, while the town’s appraisals are about half that, Feingold said. Federal and state laws now require municipalities to pay for relocation of the business, property owners’ attorney fees and the town attorney fees.”

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Franklin, Lu Ann. NW Times 8 July 2013.