When I heard that a local city council member was questioning the appraisal process during a taking for a road widening I figured he was just playing up to his constituents. After all, it s difficult to explain to an elderly homeowner that the government wants to take your land and that it will treat you fairly. Then I learned that the appraisers apparently arrived in the same car to gather information about the property. My feelings about the City Council member changed quickly. Fortunately he raised a red flag about an appraisal procedure that should be questioned.
Imminent domain is one of the four powers of government.
The other three are taxation, escheat and police power. Imminent domain is the power of government to take private property for public use. In the case at hand, the public use is the widening of a road, which is a legitimate public and common public use and purpose. The process of exercising the power of imminent domain is known as condemnation. When a property is condemned it is taken from the owner, who must be compensated the fair market value of the property.