Costa Mesa

Eminent Domain Suits Filed:The Costa Mesa Redevelopment Agency filed four lawsuits Wednesday against several businesses, including Licorice Pizza, in an effort to establish a fair market value for property the city intends to buy for the Costa Mesa Courtyard project. The suits, filed in Orange County Superior Court, involve 11.1 acres of land bounded by Park Avenue, 19th Street and Harbor and Newport boulevards. The area is part of a 14-acre redevelopment project undertaken by the city in 1972. Marilyn Whisenand, executive director of Costa Mesa redevelopment, said the suit was filed when the city could not reach agreement on a fair market value for some of the property. Under the eminent domain law, a public agency may buy land for a public project at a fair market price.