The former mayor of Anaheim, California, Curt Pringle, has an inspiring story about how his city was able to redevelop a large area without using eminent domain. He insisted that property rights would be protected, or redevelopment would not occur.
“Freedom” quickly became the motto of my administration. In fact, our local paper, the Orange County Register, dubbed Anaheim a “freedom friendly” city. In my first term as mayor, we have given homeowners a “home improvement” fee holiday, businesses a tax holiday and streamlined or eliminated a variety of city codes and regulations. We are also investing in new infrastructure—including welcoming in a private firm to provide a citywide wireless Internet system—to ensure that Anaheim remains one of America’s most exciting and modern cities. I am very proud of my city’s “freedom friendly” approach to governance, but I am most proud that we took steps— well before the Kelo case was decided—to avoid using eminent domain in development around the city.By putting these principles in place, today Anaheim is flourishing and becoming a place where freedom is not just a phrase, but also a practice.
I highly recommend reading the entire piece, which was written while he was still mayor. I don’t agree with all of his policies, but the ideal should not be the enemy of more freedom. And Pringle’s policies provided much more freedom compared to what existed before.