Sound Transit threatens eminent domain to evict charity

Sound Transit has been attempting negotiations with The Fraternal Order of Eagles to purchase their Puyallup property. They want to build a parking garage for the Sound Transit 3 project. The Eagles won’t budge, and now Sound Transit has threatened eminent domain to remove the organization from their long time home.

KTTH’s Todd Herman has been very critical of Sound Transit’s ethic regarding this project, and he is especially aghast with this threat. He lays out a few “inarguable facts” discrediting the use of eminent domain in this situation.

FACT #1: Eminent domain should be used sparingly, as a last resort of government.

FACT #2: Sound Transit owns property in Puyallup that is closer to the train station that they could build on for the same amount of money as the Eagles Lodge.

FACT #3: Sound Transit does not need to take the building away from the Fraternal Order of Eagles; a charity.

“Which leaves us with fact number four,” Todd says. “They want to.”

Todd notes specifically that King County Executive Dow Constantine, who will likely make a bid for governor, wants to.

Once Sound Transit 3 is finished, Todd believes that the big winners will be the real estate companies who got in with Sound Transit early.

“When Dow is done being governor of Washington State, he’s going to go sit on the board of some of these companies. Then we’re going to find out all the money that flows Dow’s way.”

Listen to the Todd Herman show weekdays from 3-6 p.m. on AM 770 KTTH.