The Power to Seize: A New Law reshapes Seattle
A sweeping new state law gives cities unprecedented authority to condemn private property for public projects, fundamentally changing the relationship between the city and its citizens.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
No bill of more importance to cities was passed by the state legislature and approved by the governor than the law enabling cities to exercise the right of eminent domain. It contains fifty-three sections and was drafted by Hon. George Donworth, corporation counsel for the city of Seattle. The task was imposed upon him by the convention of delegates from Spokane, Tacoma and Seattle. The law gives every city of the first-class in Washington the power to condemn land and property for streets, alleys, highways, bridges, public squares, jails and other buildings, after just compensation has first been made or paid into court. A very important feature of the law is that compensation for land taken or property damaged shall be over and above any benefits to be derived from the proposed improvement. The city is required to file a petition in the superior court praying that just compensation therefor shall be ascertained by a jury. The bill has an emergency clause, and having been approved by the governor is now in force.
“The law gives every city of the first-class in Washington the power to condemn land and property for streets, alleys, highways, bridges... after just compensation has first been made.”
This 1893 legislation laid the legal groundwork for the city-building projects that defined Seattle’s early growth. Today, eminent domain remains a flashpoint in the debate over urban expansion and the balance between the public good and private property rights.
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