Foundation Briefs Advanced Level September/October Brief Resolved
The Use of Eminent Domain is Justified
Download 0.68 Mb.
|
- Navigate this page:
- Stadiums Lack of Success Due to Other Factors
The Use of Eminent Domain is JustifiedConstitutional basis for eminent domain, Fj Johnson, Garrett. “The Economic Impact of New Stadiums and Arenas on Cities” University of Denver Sports and Entertainment Law Journal. With the increase in construction projects over the last couple of decades, comes the growing need to find suitable land on which to locate these facilities. Property owners, as well as governments, have faced several issues related to this, most notably eminent domain. Local governments increasingly use the power of eminent domain to take land from private citizens, and give it to developers to build stadiums and arenas. The “takings clause” of the Fifth Amendment, which is applied to the states through the Fourteenth Amendment, states that, “nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation. “The “takings clause” prohibits the government’s power to take property if it is not for public use. Meyer v. City of Cleveland,Fj
The courts have broadly construed the term “public use” in the context of sports and recreation, but generally defer to the state legislatures when trying to formulate a justification and intent. Although the United States Supreme Court has never heard a case which specifically dealt with a new stadium and its public use, a couple lower courts have and consistently recognized the significance of stadiums to a community. The court in Meyer v. City of Cleveland had to determine if a newly planned stadium was a “lawful municipal purpose.” The court concluded that it was, stating a municipality’s duty to “please and amuse their inhabitants . . . is unquestioned.” Berman v. Parker,Fj Johnson, Garrett. “The Economic Impact of New Stadiums and Arenas on Cities” University of Denver Sports and Entertainment Law Journal. As mentioned earlier in this paper, local officials will sometimes use a new stadium or arena as the centerpiece of their urban renewal efforts. They argue that they have eminent domain powers for these projects and cite several United States Supreme Court cases to support their assertions. In Berman v. Parker, the Court opined that it supported the taking of commercial property within an area designated for urban renewal. In Berman, Washington D.C. officials attempted to revitalize certain areas of town that were designated as blighted. The plaintiff’s store was located in one of these areas and was condemned by the local government. The plaintiff challenged this condemnation on the grounds that it was unconstitutional for the government to take his land and give it to a private developer. The Court stated, “[i]f owner after owner were permitted to resist these redevelopment programs on the ground that his particular property was not being used against the public interest, integrated plans for redevelopment would suffer greatly.” The condemnation action was upheld by the Court because the redevelopment of the blighted area served a public purpose and was a legitimate taking. Kelo v. City of New London, Fj Johnson, Garrett. “The Economic Impact of New Stadiums and Arenas on Cities” University of Denver Sports and Entertainment Law Journal. In Kelo v. City of New London, the Supreme Court held that economic development was a valid purpose to satisfy the public use requirement. Kelo concerned an economically depressed area of New London, Connecticut and local officials’ efforts to revitalize the area by placing a $300 million Pfizer facility in it. Susette Kelo was among several people whose residence was located in this area, and refused to give up their land in favor of the new development, arguing that the city’s taking was a violation of the public use requirement of the Fifth Amendment. The Court concluded that the use of eminent domain in this situation was a legitimate use noting, “[p]romoting economic development is a traditional and long accepted function of government.” These two decisions show just how broad the meaning of “public use” can be. If those who support the construction of a new facility can couch their argument in terms of it serving a public purpose, courts will have a difficult time determining that it is not a valid public use. Stadiums Lack of Success Due to Other FactorsStudy Basis, Fj Koehler, Peter. “Why Do Some Stadium Redevelopment Projects Succeed Where Others Fail? An Analysis Using Macro-Level Trends in Stadium Building” Colgate University. Summer 2012. Literature suggests than only 8 of 55 stadiums that are currently in-use and were constructed with at least 25% public funding have succeeded in spurring economic development in their surrounding area. This paper examines trends in stadium building to highlight attributes of stadiums, in both structure and placement, which are integral to their ability to successfully create economic development. Downtown Location affects success, Fj
Intuitively this makes sense, as cities with residents that have higher incomes will have higher levels of disposable income which they can spend on items such as tickets for sporting events. Additionally, cities with lower crime rates will be more likely to draw in visitors from surrounding areas who will feel safer enjoying themselves in the city and doing things like taking their families to a sporting event. The fact that the average populations of cities in which successful stadium redevelopment projects have occurred may seem somewhat surprising. Certainly, in larger markets, there are more potential fans to attend sports games and frequent businesses in the area surrounding stadiums. However, what this may suggest is that population is not as a big a factor is initially believed. Recent stadium redevelopment projects, such as Yankee Stadium in Bronx, NY, which has a population of 1,383,871, have not succeeded where other recent projects, such as Target Field in Minneapolis, MN, which has a population of 382,578, have succeeded. Though smaller markets face greater challenges on and off of the field, professional sports do have the ability to revitalize smaller markets. On the other hand, though it is easier for the Yankees to draw large crowds than the Twins, Yankee Stadium has brought little economic growth to the Bronx. Walkability affects success, Fj Koehler, Peter. “Why Do Some Stadium Redevelopment Projects Succeed Where Others Fail? An Analysis Using Macro-Level Trends in Stadium Building” Colgate University. Summer 2012. Walk Score is an independent corporation that calculates the walkability of different urban neighborhoods throughout the United States by giving a rating out of 100 (higher being better). To assign a neighborhood a Walk Score, the Walk Score company determines how clustered a neighborhood’s population is around the buildings which they frequent and then does a regression analysis on such factors. (Walk Score 2012) Below are the trends in Walk Score for the neighborhoods currently employed MLB and NFL stadiums are located in: 
What is the big deal about being easily accessible by foot other than the environmental benefit that the use of fewer cars brings? For one, less traffic on game days means less impact on residents and businesses and also means more people will patronize the city that otherwise would have stayed away. (Property Counselors 2006) Also, the fact that more people will walk to the stadium will increase the foot traffic around the restaurants and businesses that are located near the stadium. The more car-dependent a stadium such as Ford Field is, the more fans will go right to the stadium and bypass opportunities to spend their money elsewhere. In addition, this effect might be doubled because businesses that may have had interest in developing around a stadium will be less likely to do so knowing that fans will not be spending much time in the surrounding area. Public Transit affects success, Fj Koehler, Peter. “Why Do Some Stadium Redevelopment Projects Succeed Where Others Fail? An Analysis Using Macro-Level Trends in Stadium Building” Colgate University. Summer 2012. Encouraging public transportation is of merit from an environmental aspect, as it is a highly efficient way of transporting large numbers of people, and it is of merit from an economic level as well. A well-positioned stadium will have public transportation that takes fans very close to the stadium, with them needing to walk only a relatively short distance. However this foot traffic in the area directly around the stadium will allow the potential for businesses there to thrive. It should thus come as no surprise that as shown below, successful stadiums have public transit that is available closer to the stadium: 
The role of subsidies in the success of stadiums is minimal. Subsidies keep stadiums in town; the success of stadiums is due to other factors beyond the influence of subsidies. In other words, the failure of stadiums is not because of the subsidies themselves. Directory: school -> jchs -> staff school -> April 7, 2016 Theatre school -> Census in Schools and the 2010 Census – What’s Next? school -> Ap u. S. History presidents list the Young Republic, 1788-1815 school -> Your Name Period Date Chapter 24 Earth Science Word Study Movements of the Ocean school -> Introduction school -> Cutting Greenhouse Gases Global warming school -> Vocabulary sc geography The Land school -> Evaluate key political, social & economic changes that occurred in Georgia between 1877 & 1918 staff -> A history Of us secret Human Experimentation staff -> Things To Have Down Cold For The ap test Download 0.68 Mb. Share with your friends:
|
