Phoenix, Arizona
In 2001, Phoenix condemned the Hi Dreams pipe and tobacco accessories shop because the City wanted the property to be used by a business it found more desirable. However, the City failed to find a developer willing to purchase the property.[1]
The land on which the thriving business stood is still vacant.
[1] See City of Phoenix v. Soza, No. CV2001-000068 (Maricopa Super. Ct. May 14, 2002); see also “24th St. Broadway Development Touted,” The Arizona Republic, Oct. 18, 1995; Jordan Rose, “Eminent Domain Abuse in Arizona: The Growing Threat to Private Property,” Goldwater Institute, Aug. 16, 2002, available at http://www.heartland.org/pdf/10340.pdf (May 26, 2006).