A village board in southeast Wisconsin has deemed thousands of acres of farmland and a few dozen homes to be blighted, allowing it to seize the property for a Foxconn manufacturing complex.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports that Mount Pleasant trustees declared the area blighted Monday. State law says a property can be deemed blighted if it’s predominantly open or impedes the growth of the community.
Most homeowners in the area have agreed to sell their property or will be subject to eminent domain. But a dozen property owners filed a federal lawsuit in January, arguing the village’s use of eminent domain is unconstitutional because it’s for private rather than public benefit.
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They also say the offers for their properties are too low.
The area also includes about 2,800 acres of farmland.
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