It is the time of year when the Great British weather batters buildings up and down the country causing signs to fall off some and roofs to cave in! Beware, though, if you are the Landlord or manager of a mixed use building – emergency repairs may cost you more than you think. Section 20 … Continue Reading
In September, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court unanimously decided in Reading Area Water Authority v. Schuylkill River Greenway, that a “water authority” may not condemn a utility easement over privately-owned land for the sole purpose of providing a private developer sewage and drainage facilities for a proposed residential housing development. The case is important because it … Continue Reading
This second blog post of the two-part series features just a few of the tools of inclusionary eminent domain that can be retrofitted for purposes of constructing or preserving affordable housing on land condemned for economic development, or new development projects generally. The tools are interrelated and have the ability to operate in tandem to … Continue Reading
This first part of a two-part blog series explores a new concept, “inclusionary eminent domain,” that has emerged in real estate development. The concept serves to temper and reconcile the interests of various stakeholders involved in eminent domain takings for economic development. The concept has evolved in response to the 2005 landmark United States Supreme … Continue Reading
This post was written by Joe Marger and Leah Speckhard The Supreme Court’s refusal in February 2014 to hear the real estate driven Ninth Circuit case, Salameh v. Tarsadia, provided Condo-hotel owners and developers with relatively clear guidelines on how to avoid securities issues and/or litigation when selling Condominium units. The determination of what constitutes … Continue Reading
This post was also written by Peter Schnore. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s December 2013 decision regarding the constitutionality of the 2012 law amending Pennsylvania’s Oil and Gas Act (Act 13) came as a disappointment to the oil and gas industry. Conversely, the decision was a holiday gift to those governments, groups and individuals seeking greater … Continue Reading
On September 13, 2012, FHA issued Mortgagee Letter 2012-18, putting in place a few temporary condominium project approval guideline changes, effective through August 31, 2014. Among the guidelines affected is the maximum percentage of non-residential space permitted in the project to qualify for FHA financing. Under the previous guideline, no more than 25 percent of … Continue Reading
The City of Chicago has prevailed in the latest round of a "no holds barred" battle with local property owners over the constitutionality of The Chicago Landmarks Ordinance. In a decision dated May 2, 2012 by the Circuit Court of Cook County, the property owners' claims that the Landmarks Ordinance was unconstitutionally vague and violated due process were rejected, and the court upheld the Ordinance. Hanna and Mrowka v. City of Chicago. No. 06 CH 19422. The landowners had previously won a highly favorable ruling at the appellate court level (in 2009), which raised the prospect of the invalidation of the Ordinance (as reported in a previous Reed Smith Client Alert) - a result that would have sent shockwaves through the historic preservation community nationwide. With the case remanded to it for decision, the trial court considered the due process vagueness issue in detail, including as to the clarity of the Ordinance's criteria for landmark status; but it was not persuaded by the property owners' arguments, and found that they did not meet their burden of rebutting the presumption of the constitutionality of the legislation, thus upholding the Ordinance.… Continue Reading
