Florida Eminent Domain Blog | Gregory W. Stoner

The Stimulus Package signed into law by President Barack Obama on February 17, 2009 includes $ 317.7 billion in direct government spending. Of this money, over $1 billion is slated for infrastructure and housing projects in Florida. And most, if not all of those projects, will require the use of eminent domain.

Florida law prohibits the use of eminent domain merely for the removal of urban blight or the promotion of private, ostensibly job-creating enterprises, but most infrastructure improvements will require the use of eminent domain.

Road widening, road improvements, and new roads are probably the most common project that requires eminent domain. However, the creation of public services, from recreation centers to courthouses also often requires the use of eminent domain. The Department of Education has been given a huge chunk of the stimulus package, $41.5 billion, and, though much of it is slated for new subsidized student loans, some of it will go to the renovation of old schools and the construction of new ones.

Energy and environmental projects received nearly a third of the total budget, just shy of $100 billion. Energy projects that may require eminent domain in Florida include wind generation plants, solar energy plants, and experimental tidal energy plants. Environmental projects that may require the use of eminent domain in Florida include environmental offsets for road projects, expansions of protected areas, and reclamation of deserted (and possibly polluted) industrial sites.

No matter what the cause or the condemning authority, eminent domain usually means that you will lose your property, although we will fight for your property to the full extent possible. In this time of depressed real estate values, it is even more crucial that you fight for full compensation when all or part of your property is taken, including severance damages. Please call or email us today to schedule an eminent domain consultation with the Florida Property Rights Law Firm, P.A.