Eminent Domain used to buy holdout land for Hike and Bike Trail
By Jesus Beltran II
Edinburg Texas, August 11, 2023 – The City of Edinburg will use eminent its domain powers to acquire land for the Edinburg/McAllen Hike and Bike Trail.
The agenda for the July 31 Edinburg City Commission meeting included the item on whether to use Eminent Domain to obtain land needed for the Edinburg/McAllen Hike and Bike Trail. The vote was done in favor of this option.
Fern McClaugherty, well-known members of the OWLS who attended this meeting, did address the situation stating “A public necessity for the welfare for the city of Edinburg. Can you explain why it’s a public necessity?”
The answer was the hike and bike trail, according to the mayor. One commissioner stated, “We would have lost, roughly, a million dollars in improvements…if we didn’t get this piece of land.”
“People seem to think we just take the land… It’s kind of a forced sale” one commissioner said.
The “forced sale” of 2100 square feet of land, near the intersection of South McColl & Wisconsin was the last hold-out for the proposed hike/bike trail connecting McAllen to Edinburg.
“We pay them market value” another commissioner said. According to the commissioner, the part of the property the city wants to take/buy was a “right of way piece. It was always intended for improvement or expansion.”
McClaugherty explained, “I just know, as a property owner, a lot of times, we don’t want to sell our property … but when we don’t want to sell, that’s what hurts.”
On a different note, the commissioners voted in favor of the proposed $10,000 sponsorship of the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation for the City of Edinburg’s Library & Cultural Arts Department’s 9th annual South Texas International Film Festival, which should take place between September 14-16, 2023.