Relocating an eminent domain
A small house once at the center of a Supreme Court decision on government seizure of private property has found a safe haven.
The pink clapboard house that stood in the way of New London’s efforts to build a riverfront project and sparked a property rights movement was disassembled, then relocated close to downtown.
New owner Avner Gregory dedicated his house before about 200 people.
“This was somebody’s house and they were asked to leave,” he said. “This is a house that represents a home to the everyday people of America.”
Gregory paid $1 for the house and spent $100,000 dismantling it, moving it from Ft. Trumbull, and rebuilding it near downtown New London.
The house once belonged to Susette Kelo, who raised a battle cry of eminent domain abuse against New London’s efforts to make way for condominiums, a hotel and offices. She said the relocated home would be a reminder of how the city reshaped the neighborhood she had to abandon.
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