People deserve property answers

5/22/07
The 2005 U.S. Supreme Court decision enshrining eminent domain as an acceptable practice for taking one person’s property and giving it to someone else left many people flummoxed. Surely the state could take a person’s house for a school or a hospital, but giving it to a multimillionaire developer was hard to justify. But the court ruled, in a controversial 5-4 decision, that a development project meant to spur growth fell under the rubric of public benefit, and the rules of property rights were changed.
Owners have been asking questions ever since, and a nationwide backlash against that decision has led many states to severely limit the practice of eminent domain. Connecticut hasn’t yet followed that route, but the governor last week did name an ombudsman for property rights, an official whose job it is to answer the public’s complaints and concerns about insoluble property questions. It’s a good step on the way to eminent domain reform.
Sixty-four-year-old Robert S. Poliner, a former Republican state chairman, will take over the new job in the near future; he is by all accounts a solid choice. Pending confirmation by the Legislature, he will bring business and real estate experience to his position and give the public a much-needed voice.
Maybe his first order of business can be to figure out the Steel Point mess. The Bridgeport megadevelopment has been stalled for months, with one property owner, the Pequonnock Yacht Club, yet to reach agreement with the city on a deal to move the business. The city has many times threatened to resort to eminent domain, and it may reach that point. Either way, it’s time for some action and — at long last — some shovels in the ground.
Filling this position won’t solve property disputes in the state, but it’s good to give the public a voice and a place to go for answers from the state government. Someday, when the Assembly gets around to actually enacting legislation, maybe they can take a real look at eminent domain and finally clear up those contentious questions.