26/05/2026
EMINENT DOMAIN, LOCAL: Silence is acquiescence. Enough is enough!
As The Edge Berea KY points out throughout this article, the rights of property owners to protect and retain their property fall into the hands of our elected state legislators. Throughout my life, various friends have turned to 'little ol' me' for help navigating eminent domain issues. I've walked farms, taken photos and helped prepare statements against big business taking of private property for public use, and I've poured over countless years of city ordinances and state laws governing those things -- not as an attorney, of course, because I am not one -- but as a soundboard bound by reason and a strong sense of justice.
Noting my participation is not intended to imply that we ever won (well, maybe a little), but to simply state: I understand that our legislature decides how local governments and judges must view our current eminent domain laws. I also understand that before we can count on our legislators to fix overreaching statutory power to prevent unjustified taking of property, we must put legislators in place who not only share our perspective but are more than willing to speak up for us, and answer to us.
We citizens will not see threats to our property (and tenant) rights end until we STOP CHOOSING legislators who are too distracted by theirs' and their donors' inexplicable wealth to protect us from it.
We must STOP CHOOSING legislators who are not listening.
I, and Anthony Looney for KY District 81, House of Representatives , and David Johnson for State Representative-91 are listening.
If we don't choose differently, we will keep getting what we've got.
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Y'all, please read the article. What's happening to our neighbors could easily happen to you - if it hasn't already.:
"In any case, if KYTC were to move on this project, word would have had to come from our state delegates, Sen. Jared Carpenter and Rep. Deanna Gordon. Now that there was federal funding, they would have to be the ones to procure state funds for the project, too. I tried but failed to make contact with either one of them."
"I also tried and failed multiple times by phone and by email to confirm that Gordon told Scott when he’d asked her to help him fight the road, that he was just being a NIMBY (“not in my back yard”). Lordy, if that is true, talk about tone deaf. Of course Scott is NIMBY. The road literally will be in his back yard."
https://www.theedgebereaky.com/when-our-elected-leaders-say-they-support-property-rights-ask-them-what-they-did-to-help-protect-the-gabbard-farm/?fbclid=IwY2xjawSCOCBleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFFZjN0dUhBRmNKM3hHYlFyc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHjDq10Dgfwx7mfqYmKf-P6vOpHVf0Y4OzMsv7aV2c3jV80zBunXNFoCTqEB2_aem_cP3A1L73lN2CluJfxrhffQ
It’s up to us to keep our leaders accountable