new family blog

Looking ahead to 2006, I'm going to refine my blogging a little bit. Family-related news and notes will be posted to a new blog (californiamorris.blogspot.com) while this blog will remain--for the time being--a miscellaneous collection of comments and accounts of my life as both a cyclist and teaching geographer. Happy Holidays!

urban blight: a short primer

Widely used for more than half a century in the United States, the term "blight" carries a very loaded set of meanings in the context ofmodern urban planning and design setting--and how we define "blight" lies at the heart of much of the current controversy concerning eminent domain. The word "blight" stems from Old English origins, where it had the general meaning of a "rust" or a skin disease--the deterioration of something at the surface. This meaning became specifically applied to plants, and the various fungal diseases that didn't just kill the plant but caused its leaves, stems, etc. to become withered or discolored; the most (in)famous of these is the "potato blight" that triggered mass migration of Irish in the 1840s to the United States, Britain, and elsewhere. Over time, "blight" became used as a general term suggesting the spoilage or destruction of something, typically with the connotation that some sort of metaphorical "disease" was at work, resulting in, among other things, the "uglification" of something. Thus, in an urban area, blight is often taken to mean a "run down" neighborhood or building that has fallen into disuse and dilapidation due to a lack of maintenance. This degradation of the landscape is seen as representing a more profound degradation of the resident society. So far, so good; kind of like porn, while we might be hard-pressed to define urban blight in words, we certainly know it when we see it. But there's a catch. The Oxford Dictionary of Geography reminds us that in planning circles, "blight" refers to "the reduction of economic activity or property values in a particular area"--especially in terms of commercial activity as opposed to residential properties (where "slum" is the more commonly applied term). This is why the post-1949 shift in focus of urban renewal efforts in the United States away from "slums" to "blight" is significant; urban renewal ever since has been less about low-income housing and more about generating commercial activity and the increased property values and tax revenues that come with that activity. In other words, a planner's "blighted" building or neighborhood is often someone's beloved "home"--not the most prestigious of properties, but not necessarily something the residents perceive to be "run down". That was certainly the case with the plaintiffs in the recent Supreme Court case concerning New London (CT)'s use of eminent domain. As of yet, Wikipedia does not have an entry on "urban blight", but there is a very good discussion of "urban renewal". Also, you might wish to consult Robert Cowan's Dictionary of Urbanism. I only just now discovered this resource, so I'm not familiar with it. But it does contain an entry on "blight". It seems worth checking out, too.

eminent domain in 2006

As anyone who reads newspapers or listens to political talk radio already knows, eminent domain is rapidly emerging as one of the key hot-button political issues, locally and nationally, of the next election cycle or two. Eminent domain is the practice long established in modern "common law"--and enshrined in the "takings clause" at the tail end of the 5th Amendment to the U.S. Constituion--that allows government to "take" private property in the name of the common good. While long controversial, it's a standard component of urban renewal/redevelopment efforts, everything from making room to build a new freeway or expand an airport to promoting the economic revival of a "blighted" neighborhood. (A related post on "blight" follows.) This issue has taken on new political significance, though, thanks to a recent, controversial split decision by the U.S. Supreme court, known as Kelo v. New London, CT (also see this commentary on the Kelo decision)

• two more websites on eminent domain law: www.eminentdomainlaw.net and UMoKC law school

In response to the political uproar following the Kelo decision, particularly from the right, several ballot initiatives are in the works in California, all of which seek to constrain government's ability to "take" private property for public purposes such as renewal/redevelopment. It will be interesting to see how the debate plays out. At first glance, this seems like a simple right (private property rights) vs. left (government-led redistribution) debate, but given the history of urban renewal in the USA--where taxpayer-supported projects have benefited big business more than low-income residents and small "mom and pop" businesses--the poltical allegiences could get rather twisted. Expect the mainstream Democrats to be strongly opposed to any ballot measures that seek to limit eminent-domain powers (or make them more expensive by requiring increased compensation), both on ideological grounds and because Democrats, no less than Republicans, rely on big-business (and big labor) donors, especially at the local level. Republicans, on the other hand, will be torn: the ideological flag carriers of Libertarian values will be strongly in support of the ballot measures, putting the Republican establishment (if such a thing still exists in California) in something of a pickle, between their grassroots supporters on one side and their corporate donors on the other. One thing seems for sure: the voters in the end will make little real difference to what actually happens. We'll all be confused by competing ballot measures regarding a legal issue that is no less convoluted than either energy or insurance regulation--two other big issues that voter propositions failed to accomplish much of anything, certainly not true reform. As a result, we can expect two more things: (1) voters will become even more cynical and disillusioned (if that's possible), and (2) the courts will be where all the real action is. While the voter-initiative idea is a hallmark of early-20th-century Progressive political reform, it's a concept that really has become more of a lawyers-and-judges full-employment program. Any of you still weighing possible career choices, it looks like property and eminent-domain law is a sure-fire growth industry. Happy Christma(Kwanza)kkah to you all! (You think the holiday season is confusing enough already, in only 3 or 4 more years, the Muslim Hajj celebrations--linked to Islam's 354-day lunar calendar--will fall during late December, too. Happy ChrismaKwanzaHajjiKkah?)