Discuss the consequences of the Michigan State Supreme Court case of Poletown Neighborhood Council v. City of Detroit and the Detroit Economic Development Corporation

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

In the Poletown Neighborhood Council v. City of Detroit and the Detroit Economic Development Corporation, the Detroit Economic Development Corporation sought to acquire a large parcel of land on which members of the Poletown Neighborhood Council resided and had small businesses. Once the development agency had acquired the land using the city's eminent domain power, that property would be conveyed to General Motors to expand its plant. The plaintiffs, who did not want their community destroyed, sued the city and the development council on the grounds that they were attempting to abuse their power of eminent domain to unconstitutionally take private property for a private use. In decisions that surprised many legal scholars, the lower courts upheld the taking. The high court likewise held that the use of eminent domain was constitutional. The court said that the heart of this dispute was whether the proposed condemnation is for the primary benefit of the public or the private user, and it went on to say that once a legislature has declared that a particular government action meets a public need and serves a public purpose, that finding is entitled to deference from the court. After this case, most courts appeared to give state agencies very broad latitude in cases involving takings for private development, finding public use when there is any plausible argument that the public will benefit from the new use. Moreover, this broad latitude was not just given in cases where individuals' property was being taken. Increasingly, governments began using eminent domain to transfer property from one business to another.