Nothing in Cagle's attempt to wriggle out of the obloquy that has deservedly falled upon his head addresses the issue, which is that he is attempting to abuse the concept of "eminent domain" (which, as a matter of Constitutional law, is limited to "public use") for private gain.
By private gain, do you mean Mr. Cagle personally stands to gain from his "powerplay", or that the City of Duncanville is looking to gain more tax revenues than they can get from Mrs. Hidge's property as is? Or, a combo of both?
I live on a small lake with no municipalities closeby. But hypothetically, let's say the county decided a marina-boat storage-restaurant-motel would pay more taxes than they could get from me and my neighbors. If they tried to use the "eminent domain" concept to let a developer profit from our private property while they raised their revenues, we'd get a good laywer, and fight the county like wildcats. I hope to die here.
The town of Alabaster is trying this ruse to get a Wal-Mart SuperCenter built in their town limits. And there is one already less than 10 miles south off I-65. The mayor wants more tax revenues and the developer wants a hefty profit.
You don't think the developer would accidently misplace some cash where the mayor could find it, do you? They only do that sort of thing in the movies, right? /sarcasm
I'm not saying that Mr. Cagle or the Alabaster mayor is a crook. But, some may doubt their motives are entirely for the public good.