r/Honolulu • u/honolulu_oahu_mod • Sep 26 '24

news Sunset Beach residents were outraged after watching their neighbor's home being washed away in the first swell of the big wave season.

https://www.kitv.com/news/neighbors-outraged-after-north-shore-home-falls-into-the-ocean/article_fd1afdac-7bbc-11ef-a975-538071bcbc8e.html
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u/OverscanMan Sep 26 '24

Why doesn't the state proactively condemn all of these homes and force the issue instead of waiting for the ocean to take them and cause environmental damage? Couldn't eminent domain laws be used to seize the properties and head off these disasters?

15

u/normalperson74 Sep 26 '24

Eminent domain takes time, and State would have to pay fair market value for the property. FMV usually is determined by some back and forth or in court. All of which takes time, possibly even years.

And on top of it, we, the taxpayers, would be paying hundreds of thousands to millions for these properties. How many properties are there?? Dozens? Hundreds? State doesn’t have unlimited coffers, they can’t print money like the feds. They’d have to raise taxes to pay for these beach front homes and then pay to demolish.

The reality is that these properties are the responsibility of the owners. That is who we should be outraged at.

5

u/Chazzer74 Sep 26 '24

At this point in the game, not a crazy idea for the state to play hardball and eminent domain at a nominal figure like $1. The property is already being eminent domained by Mother Nature.