I am president of my commercial condo association in Destin Florida. My real estate office, Rulnick Realty, is in a strip mall with a variety of businesses- restaurants, jewelers, bank, boutique, flooring and more. A few days ago I got a call slip with a message from our association manager:
“Our plaza has won the lotto! Check for $30,000 received in the mail”.
What!? Huh?!! I scrambled for the phone to find out what was going on. The association manager says there was a short note from an attorney that stated, “Partial settlement from EMINENT DOMAIN lawsuit” and a check for $30,000.
I scrambled to go into public records for the Walton County Clerk of Courts. There it was, the notice of eminent domain lawsuit, dated March 2003, before the owners took over the plaza from the developer:
It seems that a public water company was condemning part of our property by eminent domain. There was a further record listed as "Stipulated Order of Taking" . It reads in part: "The public body was exercising its delegated authority to obtain a perpetual easement and temporary construction easement for three years from the date of deposit. Upon twice the deposit of good faith estimate, the right, title and interest shall vest to the public water company."
Further, it said the amount of $30,000 was deposited with the court in March 2003.
SO, why is my plaza getting a check six years later? How shall we contest this amount if it is not “just”? It is too late to get our own condemnation appraisal? What is our recourse? What do the Florida Eminent Domain Statutes say?
We have many questions yet unanswered. Rest assured, my research has just began, and I will post my findings here.
It's Wendy!
Wendy Rulnick, Broker, CRP, CRS, GRI, ABR Rulnick Realty, Inc.
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Hmmm...there are people who earn very decent livings just from lawsuits...not me...but it would be fun to find out the check really WAS in the mail, hmmmm ?
Hi Wendy. That is strange. I hope you post an update about this.
Wendy,
I can't speak about FL law, but I recommended you get a better attorney than you had when you took over the association!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I've been on all sides of these transfers and would never have excepted control with out a title search, you could have had/have all sorts of liens and les pendens from mechanic's and material men! Not to mention people who've stubed their toe.
You must not have had any units financed because this should have shown up.
Bill
Sally & David - Yes, a real check showed up!
Lana - I will update.
Bill - Very interesting. There were many units financed in the plaza. I bet the individual unit's history was searched only. The association had no knowledge of this attorney, either. The story is just unfolding here....
Dig in, Wendy. This will be tough but interesting fight. Keep us posted.
Wendy,
I am a little confused???
Did the Developer has an Eminent Domain Attorney working this case???
Is there an utility easement across your property???
Wow what an interesting story Wendy! I thought you would be going on a great vacation when I 1st started to read:)
Kent - This is my first eminent domain situation, and I will get to the bottom of it!
Jimmy - The attorney was the original registered agent for the plaza. Apparently, there is no eminent domain attorney on the case - yet. We think there is a utility easement involved, however, the notice also references a 3-year construction easement. We have not seen any construction - but this is all dated in 2003. We are obtaining the attorney's records and starting our investigation.
Bill - I thought we could all go to the Bahamas, too! But we've put the check in a safe deposit box for now!
This is a very interesting title situation. Many unanswered questions - I'll be looking for more in the future.
Wendy,
I took an LLM class on Land Use while I was in law school, but I have not practiced in the area. Therefore, I am not comfortable giving any advice on your issues. However, I would like to make some suggestions. Eminent domain law can be very complex. There are attorneys and entire law firms that are dedicated to nothing else. Aside from land use and basic real estate issues, there are constitutional law issues at play. I suggest that you call one of the well known firms and speak to them on the phone. An experienced eminent domain lawyer will know right off the bat if you "have a case" or not. They have probably spent hundreds of hours researching the nuances of situations just like yours. People call me all the time to get free information, it is just part of the job. Once you get some free info from them you can make more informed decisions.
Was there any construction by the water company after deposit into the court registry? After the three years? I am guessing not, or else you would have been notified of this easement at that moment.
I wish you the best of luck in your battle.
Hi Christopher - Thank you much for writing. We are still waiting for the attorney who originally represented the developer of the plaza to send us his file. We were going to glean info from him, as he said he was paid for his time by ? Is is the water company? He told us he is not an expert in eminent domain and seemed to recommend we get a different attorney who specializes in this field. I am dismayed that the association was never notified of this suit since we took it over from the developer three years ago. I do not know if there was construction there prior to three years ago, that is when I bought my unit. I also find that the timing of us receiving this check does not correspond to the dates in the Lis Pendens. We have decided not to cash this check as we do not know the ramifications, it is in a safe deposit box until we complete our research.