Court Opinion

ID: 9687108
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-24 16:16:17.989199+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:18:24.301463
License: Public Domain

Mat.lf.tt, J.
(dissenting). The majority concludes that the private benefit to Continental "predominates over the asserted public benefits,”1 and that the "ordinance[s] and resolutions are therefore invalid as unreasonable because the public would not be the primary beneficiary.”2 I disagree.
In Poletown Neighborhood Council v Detroit, 410 Mich 616, 632; 304 NW2d 455 (1981), this Court succinctly stated the guidelines for determining whether a particular condemnation is within the scope of the city’s power of eminent domain.
All agree that condemnation for a public use or purpose is permitted. All agree that condemnation for a private use or purpose is forbidden. Similarly, condemnation for a private use cannot be authorized whatever its incidental public benefit and condemnation for a public purpose cannot be forbidden whatever the incidental private gain. The heart of this dispute is whether the proposed condemnation is for the primary benefit of the public or the private user.
*645The majority concludes that the public benefit of cable television service fails to outweigh the private benefit conferred upon Continental Cable-vision. However, when the benefits of cable service are considered in light of Continental’s contractual obligations to the City of Lansing and the technological advances occurring rapidly in telecommunications, it becomes apparent that the public is the primary beneficiary of the condemnation.
The City of Lansing established that Continental provides a variety of services that Rose’s satellite system "does not, and cannot, provide.” The majority fails to give due consideration to the breadth of services offered through the broadcast of public, educational, and governmental channels (peg channels). Continental currently offers nine peg channels. A government channel, broadcast from city hall, carries a host of political programs. Three channels offer telecourses from Michigan State University and Lansing Community College. These telecourses allow individuals with family and employment commitments to continue their education while at home. A designated public access channel provides a forum for citizens who traditionally have limited access to avenues for the dissemination of ideas. The franchise agreement requires Continental to provide equipment, training, and assistance to the public. Additionally, there are religious access, local origination, Lansing school district, and library peg channels.
The services and programming provided through the peg channels must be considered in accordance with Continental’s contractual obligations and the ever-developing technology in order to ascertain the true public benefit. Continental has agreed, pursuant to the franchise agreement, to maintain state-of-the-art equipment and technology. This obligation is no small task, for even the casual *646observer of the evening news is aware of the almost daily advances being made in telecommunications. In an effort to meet this obligation, Continental is required to prepare periodically a report evaluating developments in technical programming service and the feasibility of implementation into its system. Some recent developments, including interactive two-way systems and on-screen home computer capabilities, indicate clearly that the vast potential of cable television service is coming to the fore.
Further, by agreeing to provide universal service, Continental has ensured that all residents, regardless of economic status, will have access to these services. The majority refers to the universal service requirement as a "restraint on the franchised cable operator, precluding the company from refusing service to poorer communities.”3 I prefer to interpret the universal service requirement as a fundamental recognition by the franchised operator that the benefits of cable service should be realized by all segments of the community. In fact, there is evidence in the record suggesting that such a realization has already occurred.4 Thus, when the peg channels, Continental’s contractual obligations, and rapid technological advances are considered in the aggregate, I believe that the condemnation in the present case is for the primary benefit of the public user.
*647I would reverse the decision of the Court of Appeals.5

 Ante at 644.

 Id.

 Ante at 640.

 The spring 1988 telecourse from Lansing Community College was received by eighteen students with a household income of less than $10,000, twelve students between $10,000 and $19,999, and thirty-three students between $20,000 and $29,999.

 Because the majority does not reach the issues raised by the cross-appellant, I decline to do so as well.