Eminent domain is a law that allows the government to take private property and use the land for the well being of the general public, and an example would be if they were trying to build a highway. The government has been occasionally using this law to take land. The problem is that they will then sell it to private investors or use it for themselves which is illegal. This happened to a couple Jim and Joanne Saleet, who live in Lakewood, Ohio. Jim and Joanne have lived in their house for over 38 years. They love living in their single family home in a quiet neighborhood but the mayor of their town wants them to leave. The mayor of Lakewood, Ohio wants the Saleets and about 55 other families to move out so that a private investor can come and build high end condos and malls which can bring in more property tax. The area that the Saleets live in is a very scenic area that condos would sell greatly in. The mayor, to make the eminent domain legal, lied on the document and said that the area was very blighted or trashed. The Saleets thought that this was terrible because they absolutely love the place they live. They worked very hard to live their and they do not want to have to move.

There have been more instances of this occurring and some of those involved people becoming  homeless. We need to help stop this illegal taking of people’s property. We need to feel safe at home and safe on our property. I wish for us to know that our property is our property and that it will stay our property until we decide ourselves to sell it and not someone telling us that we have to sell our property. If they do take your property illegally it is like someone is taking a part of you and giving it to someone who might be “better” than you because they “benefit” others more. Almost 10,000 property owners were removed from their property in the last 5 years through eminent domain. The government needs to stop giving land away to private investors or to private companies. They should only take land when they 100% need it and that is not happening when they try to take land and give it to private investors who will generate more taxes. If we can stop this from happening we can at last live safely. #KeepYourProperty The Saleet Story

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