What the sovereign wants in Kings Point
Steven Dianat's family is among those who would be affected by a Kings Point plan to seize by eminent domain waterfront land on East Shore Road, where homes are valued at more than $1 million. Credit: Steve Pfost
What the sovereign wants in Kings Point
Readers of the story on the Kings Point plan to take waterfront land for park use should be aware that the power of eminent domain is an inherent character of sovereignty needing no constitutional, legislative or court approval [“Village can take property,” News, April 27].
The law merely provides that when the power of eminent domain is asserted, the government must pay just compensation.
When Nassau County condemned Nunley’s Carousel in 1995, a court was told that when the sovereign needed a horse the sovereign could take a horse, and the court agreed.
Gennaro Pasquale, Oyster Bay
Editor’s note: The writer is a lawyer.
