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Daily Local News [West Chester, PA]
| Sahas
find support from outside area |
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But he is among a group of a growing number of individuals from all over the country voicing their opinions on Coatesville's regional recreation center and the city's eminent domain actions. "We've had e-mails from people in Alaska, California and Texas," said Dick Saha, a Valley resident who has been battling the city to keep his farm for more than three years. Coatesville plans to use the Sahas' property as part of the land for the golf course within the recreation center. The center is also slated to include an indoor/outdoor family entertainment center, indoor ice rink and hotel and conference center. Saha said since his family's plight has hit the national newswire and special interest Web sites, he has received dozens and dozens of e-mails and letters. "I'm still trying to reply to them all," he said. The e-mails have offered Web sites with information on eminent domain, groups that offer help, as well as money. "It's nice for someone to do that for someone that they don't even know," said Saha, who said he has received checks ranging from $5 to $100. Waggoner found out about the Sahas' plight on a Web site's discussion forum where numerous postings have appeared over the last few weeks. "I have been shocked the way the Sahas have been treated," said Waggoner. "..I would not be as angry if the town officials had at least shown they had a heart, but it is clear they do not. They are just creating a huge recreational complex and golf course out of desperation without an ounce of compassion for the people they are affecting and without regard to the spirit and intent of eminent domain." Waggoner said he feels eminent domain is to be used only for specific purposes and the regional recreation center doesn't apply. "Eminent domain used to be invoked only if the proposed improvement was something beneficial to the entire community and important to public use," he said. "These days, it is being used to move in stores and recreation centers ..Capitalism is a good thing, but if a business can't find another spot to open, it should not get the bully pulpit of the government to provide a way to move into a place already filled." While Waggoner's comments are coming from across the country, some of his feelings are also being echoed locally by Calvin Sun, a resident of Tredyffrin who has come to the last two city council meetings to show support for the Sahas. Sun told council he opposed their actions to take the Saha property and felt it was a move of "fiscal irresponsibility" and would "do little to help revitalize Coatesville." Paul G. Janssen Jr., Coatesville city manager, said responses such as these are simply those of gadflies. "They just like this sort of thing," he said, of the controversy surrounding the city's actions. City council President Stephon Hines also noted the increase in people from outside the city coming to meetings and commenting on city affairs. "People attending our meetings and not residents of the city are putting the city down," he said at the city council meeting last week. "There is so much positive going on in this meeting that it is ridiculous to focus on the negative." Sun said he understood where Hines was coming from. "I think council has the best interest of the city at heart," he said in a recent interview. But, he added, all the good work being done by the council for the city is being overshadowed by this one issue. "(Eminent domain) is more than a local issue ..to me it's an attack on the fundamental right to private property," said Sun. Sun said he felt the need to come to the Coatesville meetings after having dealt with a similar issue in his own neighborhood. "I want to send a message to other governments to use eminent domain in the proper way," he said. Also involved in the protest that stopped the stadium from being built in Philadelphia's Chinatown, Sun said he has a particular problem with the Sahas' situation since it is a neighboring municipality coming in and condemning their land, not officials that the Sahas can vote for or against at election time. "It is like taxation without representation, only in this case (it's) condemnation without representation," Sun said. Support such as the Sahas have seen is coming from people who have seen or fear the same thing happening in their neighborhood, said John Chin, executive director of the Philadelphia Chinatown Development Corp. Chin was heavily involved in the protests that prevented the city from building a stadium in Chinatown. His battle too saw support locally and from all over the nation. "Many people thought 'If this can happen to the Chinatown community, could it happen to ours?'" Chin said. He said support such as this can certainly help situations such as that facing the Sahas. But Saha said while the support is encouraging he isn't sure what good it will do. "It just gripes you the fact that they keep going," he said of the city. "I wonder if they even take notice of the support we're receiving." |
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