2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121a - Urban Redevelopment Corporations › Section 2 - Declaration of Public Necessity; Acquisition and Regulation of Private Property

Section 2. It is hereby declared that blighted open, decadent or sub-standard areas exist in certain cities and towns in this commonwealth, and that each of such areas constitutes a serious and growing menace, injurious and inimical to the safety, health, morals and welfare of the residents of the commonwealth and the sound growth of the communities therein; that the existence of each of such areas contributes substantially to the spread of disease and crime, necessitating excessive and disproportionate expenditure of public funds for the preservation of the public health and safety, for crime prevention, correction, prosecution, punishment, and the treatment of juvenile delinquency and for the maintenance of adequate police, fire and accident protection and other public services and facilities, constitutes an economic and social liability, substantially impairs or arrests the sound growth of cities and towns, and retards the provision of residential, commercial and industrial buildings and other improvements; that each of such areas decreases the value of private investments and threatens the sources of public revenue and the financial stability of communities; that because of the economic and social interdependence of different communities and of different areas within single communities the redevelopment of land not only in sub-standard areas but also in blighted open and decadent areas in accordance with a comprehensive plan to promote the sound growth of the community is necessary in order to achieve permanent and comprehensive elimination of existing slums and sub-standard, decadent and blighted conditions and to prevent the recurrence of such slums or sub-standard, decadent or blighted conditions or their development in other parts of the community or in other communities; and that the redevelopment of blighted open areas promotes the clearance of sub-standard and decadent areas and prevents their creation and occurrence; that the menace of blighted open, decadent or sub-standard areas is beyond remedy and control solely by regulatory process in the exercise of the police power and cannot be dealt with effectively by the ordinary operations of private enterprise without the aids herein provided; that the development of property for the purpose of eliminating blighted open, decadent or sub-standard conditions thereon and preventing recurrence of such conditions in the area, the removal of structures and improvement of sites, and disposition of the property for redevelopment incidental to the foregoing, the exercise of powers by housing or redevelopment authorities and any assistance which may be given by cities and towns or any other public bodies in connection therewith, are public uses and purposes for which the aids herein provided may be given, public money expended, and the power of eminent domain exercised; that a public exigency exists which makes the use, acquisition, planning, clearance, rehabilitation or rebuilding of such blighted open, decadent, or sub-standard areas for residential, commercial, industrial, institutional, recreational or governmental buildings and appurtenant or incidental facilities as herein provided a public use and benefit for which private property may be acquired by eminent domain or regulated by wholesome and reasonable orders, laws and directions; and the necessity in the public interest for the provisions hereinafter enacted is hereby declared as a matter of legislative determination.
It is hereby further declared that in many areas throughout the commonwealth there is a shortage of decent, safe and sanitary buildings for residential, commercial, industrial, institutional, recreational, or governmental purposes; that this condition is most extreme in communities where blighted open, decadent or sub-standard areas exist; that the aforesaid conditions cannot be corrected by the ordinary operations of private enterprise without the aids herein provided; that the provisions of this chapter will stimulate the investment of private capital in blighted open, decadent or sub-standard areas, and in the construction, maintenance and operation in such areas of needed decent, safe and sanitary residential, commercial, industrial, institutional, and recreational buildings; that the construction, maintenance and operation of such buildings on such land in such areas will assist in achieving permanent and comprehensive elimination of existing slums, and sub-standard, decadent and blighted conditions and in preventing the recurrence or redevelopment of such conditions.