Business fights state government over property rights
Minnesota property owners face a variety of unique challenges. Not only do property owners need to worry about maintaining their property, but there are also environmental concerns, disputes with neighbors and land use challenges. While some of these issues are naturally occurring, others are the result of public policy or legal regulations. Property owners may, in some situations, need to turn to real estate litigation to protect their rights from others.
Some real estate disputes occur because of issues between neighbors; however, other occur because of governmental interference. Take, for example a recent case in New Jersey. Following 2012’s Superstorm Sandy the state and federal government have worked together to create a plan to reduce the impact that any future large storms could have on the state. Part of this plan is to building sand dunes along the state’s many beaches.
However, one property owner claims that the state is trying to use this plan to seize rights to the owner’s land. In this case, the property in question is a popular business with a privately-owned stretch of beach. According to the property owners, they have been asked to sign documents from the state as part of the sand dune project. These documents, they say, give the state ownership rights to the land which could lead to the creating of a public beach. The property owner has brought suit.
The state denies these claims and says it only wants to reduce storm damage after reports showed that dunes reduced the impact of the Superstorm in some parts of New Jersey. The state has threatened to use its powers of eminent domain if the property owners will not cooperate.
Real estate litigation — like the fight in this case — has the potential to impact the success of a Minnesota business. Businesses often need to take aggressive action to protect their property rights — even from local, state or federal governmental agencies.
Source: Pioneer Press, “New Jersey beach owner sues over dune project,” Wayne Parry, Dec. 19, 2014
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