Eminent Domain

The experiences of an Alstead couple point to the workings of eminent domain procedures in New Hampshire.

The procedures are laid out RSA 498-A for the Eminent Domain Procedure Act and PART Tax 210 for the Administrative Rules governing this process with the state Board of Tax and Land Appeals.

The state board offers further explanation here.

Generally, eminent domain allows the state to take private property for public use as long as fair compensation is offered.

It is used by the state in all kinds of situations, most particularly for road and highway projects.

For instance, the massive $269 million Little Bay Bridges project in the Seacoast region that is about to start involved land takings in order to widen the Spaulding Turnpike through areas of Newington and Dover.

In the case of the Alstead couple, Gene and Bobbie Wilson are trying to negotiate with the state for an alternative to a proposed road project along Route 123 that would take their property.

The 2005 floods heavily damaged Route 123, and the state plans to fix the poor drainage and improve safety along a 2.5 stretch of the road. Temporary jersey barriers will be replaced with guardrails and and the slopes at the road’s shoulders will be flattened.

The state took by eminent domain 8,625 square feet of Wilson Farm land. The state is paying $5,800 for the land.

The Wilson Farm was severely damaged during the 2005 flooding and with the help of the state — and $400,000, consisting of their life savings and bank loans — the Wilsons landed back on their feet.

“I just can’t believe that five years later, after helping us, they’re (the state) going to take that away from us,” Bobbie Wilson told the Nashua Telegraph.

The Wilsons and the state are negotiating alternatives that include a land swap with abutting land that the state took after the floods.

How do you feel about eminent domain? Is it a necessary means for the state to acquire land for the greater good? Is there another way?