Mrs. Joy Ford is such a sweet lady, who did not deserve this kind of treatment from her government. We all should be proud of her brave and dogged fight. She has won a battle for private property rights that benefits us all.
Props should also be shouted out to several very active and hardworking folk.....
Compromise reached in Music Row eminent-domain disputeWednesday, October 01st, 2008
The two sides of a dispute over property rights on Music Row announced a compromise yesterday.
Metro Development and Housing Agency had looked to use eminent domain to seize Country Records International, at 23 Music Circle, to give to a private developer. Houston-based Lionstone group aims to build a hotel, offices, condos and stores there.But property-owner Joy Ford steadfastly refused to sell, despite offers approaching a million dollars.
“You know, this is not about money, because I’ve been offered a lot of money for it… I set a precedent that you don’t just go and take people’s property with that eminent domain. It’s not used for that.”
Ford’s lawyers reached a compromise with Lionsgate in which she keeps her building but swaps some of her lot for adjacent land. MDHA isn’t involved, and no cash changes hands.
At one point in the dispute, Metro council members upset with this eminent domain case suggested legislation to give the counsel veto power over such moves.
WEB EXTRA:
Scott Bullock, senior attorney for the Institute for Justice, which represented Ford, says she ultimately gained from the deal.
“Joy ended up with better property, more accessible property, and actually more property too.”
Landowner Ford stays put as Music Row standoff ends
Ford said her position has always been that she would not sell her building, which her company had occupied since the early 1980s, at any price. As recently as a month ago, Ford turned down a $450,000 offer for the land behind her building, saying she needed a parking area for buses in order to keep her music company viable.
She eventually decided to accept a land swap that would let her stay put.
"This is an example of private parties sitting down and coming together," said Scott Bullock, an attorney with the Institute for Justice, an Arlington, Va.-based firm that represented Ford. "The lesson here is that government does not need eminent domain to promote redevelopment."
Joy Ford stands in front of her business on Music Circle East. Her agreement to swap land behind her office for an adjacent parking lot allows a $70 million development to move forward.
Council presses for eminent domain oversight
After the eminent domain claim against Joy Ford’s property finally came to a close late Tuesday, every one from the Metro Development and Housing Agency to Ford’s attorneys to the Houston-based developers soon to move in said they were happy with the agreement.More
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