Posted on 10/19/2007 8:12:29 PM PDT by notpoliticallycorewrecked
Fresno Mayor Alan Autry said Thursday that his plan to help Donald Trump buy Running Horse would require pledging city property as collateral.
You can read the article in today’s edition of the Fresno Bee, but I wasn’t able to link it.
ping
It has to be a pretty bad deal if BILLIONAIRE Donald Trump can’t get funding any other way. And if he can’t raise the funds otherwise, it’s too BAD A DEAL to be involved int.
Well, that’s rather disappointing.
"City officials are seeking to buy the bankrupt Running Horse golf and residential development to sell the project to Donald Trump."
It is so sad to see eminent domain used to take from one person to the benefit of another person. This isn't the first time that Fresno has used eminent domain to benefit one business over another. There used to be a wonderful Farmer’s market restaurant/marketplace that was the happening place for lunch in downtown. The city used eminent domain to build an Office Max on that property.
All I know is I’m against eminent domain when used in other than emergencies. And this is no emergency!!
That article deserves it’s own thread.
This gets very confusing. Is he looking for the city to do the negotiating for him? He has more dough than the city has! I read that the city is reluctant to use eminent domain. Will the city be purchasing the property or will they use eminent domain?
Yes Trump has tried to negotiate with other property owners a few months ago. They had a few holdouts that did not want to sell their land.
The city is not reluctant to use eminent domain. The is the second time that the city of Fresno has used eminent domain to force the sale of private property to benefit another private party.
The City of Fresno will use eminent domain to purchase the property. Then it combine all of the properties including the holdings it purchased today, and resell it to Donald Trump.
Hmmmm ...... seems there could have been a better way.
There are going to be lots of money lost on this deal no matter which way it goes. I feel sorry for the people that risked their life savings on this. They got in even before Trump showed any interest.
In the Kelo matter, people lived in and owned homes in a prime area, some for decades. The government seized valuable property, and sold it to private developers so that more taxes could be raised.
In the Running Horse development, there is a combination of farm land and blighted areas. The people on the farms willingly sold to the developers. My understanding of the piece of property in the controversy was that it had been purchased relatively cheaply but that it was not developed and there were no plans to do so, and that it was in an area of "blight." The main intent seems to be a speculative one, and not a development one.
The City of Fresno has not undertaken to take homes and farms away from citizens to sell to Mr. Trump. The City of Fresno has a mighty club that Mr. Trump lacks, and if the City does nothing, the whole area may become an area of blight much bigger than the one that existed before.
What I think is happening is that the City of Fresno is purchasing the development for the purposes of eminent domain on any land that is holding up the process. Once that is done, the City will then sell the development to Donald Trump.
I'm not on my high horse going forth as a defender of any entity here, this is only what I think is happening, and why it is happening.
If in fact it is just property where no one lives, but has abandon buildings then what is the problem with the holdouts? It still bothers me that city is forcing the sale of the properties. It is too easy for this to set prescedence for other developers.
What got me thinking about this was that someone asked me yesterday why the City is involved in this. The only thing I could think of right away was that the City had the authority and clout to bring some resolution to all of this. At some point, City officials must have concluded that in the long run, it would be more beneficial to the City and the areas surrounding the development to take the actions needed to resolve it.
Going back to Kelo, the government took valuable homes and lands from homeowners to turn over to commercial developers. In the Running Horse project, a private developer seems to have made a mess, and the City had to come in and clean up that mess. That seems to be the chief difference.
"Acknowledging that his plan to buy the stalled Running Horse development and sell it to Donald Trump faces political obstacles, Fresno Mayor Alan Autry on Tuesday offered a Plan B for the project in southwest Fresno -- turn it into a business park."
LOL
I think this mess will stay a mess.
Unless The Donald comes in and buys the property and finishes the golf course, there will be no one with the money to acquire and develop that property.
Look like Bubba is scrambling. This is why he shouldn’t be getting the city of Fresno involved in private matters.
Can’t disagree with that my friend. It’s beginning to like the proverbial black hole, and maybe the City of Fresno should cut its losses and walk away. Some time in the future this might be revived and it might work, but now just now.
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