Below The Beltway

Today’s Washington Post reports on another example of eminent domain abuse by local government, this time in Prince William County, Virginia:

The white lines that mark the parking spots around Dharmesh Desai’s auto repair shop are freshly painted, awaiting customers who will never come.

For the past 11 years, Desai has worked to meet the county’s requirements to run a small auto shop, only to be told before it opened that the county needs his land more than he does.

For the past decade, Prince William County has undergone continuous and rapid residential growth, which has far outpaced road construction. Prince William County has tried to fill the void in transportation by going into business itself building and renovating infrastructure. Using locally approved bond referendums, the county has undertaken large projects, such as the widening of Route 15, and smaller ones, such as expanding commuter parking lots.

The infrastructure campaign has not just been about moving dirt and putting down asphalt. Part of it includes demolishing shops such as Desai’s.

Desai’s building is across the street from the Potomac and Rappahannock Transportation Commission headquarters along Potomac Mills Road in Woodbridge. A commuter and employee parking lot and housing for the commission’s buses, built in the early ’90s, has not kept up with the growing need for space. The commission says it must expand.

And, to add insult to injury, the county is low-balling the number it’s willing to pay Desai for his land:

Charles Dean, who owns the transmission shop next door, knows what it is like to have the government buy his land. After four condemnations by state and local governments, the 25 acres Dean once owned has been whittled down to about half an acre.

In all of the previous condemnations, Dean has settled without protest. This is the only time, he says, he has not thought he was getting a fair deal. The county offered Desai $525,000 for his 0.8 acres and Dean $400,000 for his property, which they both think is surprisingly low.

“The appraisal, it was a slap in the face,” Dean said. “It was really a shock.”

The two owners sought independent estimates, and now Dean says his land is worth $1.2 million and Desai says his is worth at least $1.8 million. Horan said she has not seen either appraisal.

Under the “quick take” procedures that PRTC is permitted to utilize under Virginia law, however, it’s likely that Desai and Dean will not only lose their property and their business, but that they’ll be forced to accept the lower number as well.

So much for the idea of “just compensation.”