Port of Centralia Authorizes Use of Eminent Domain on Alder Street Property

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The Port of Centralia passed a resolution authorizing the use of eminent domain if necessary to acquire a home for adults living with developmental disabilities located within the road right of way to the Centralia Station project.

The port wants to acquire two parcels of property on Alder Street, known as Alderhouse.

The concept for Alderhouse was created by four parents in an effort to create housing for their children. The idea came to fruition in 1999.

Although at one time the property was home to 11 disabled adults, currently there are six residents in their 30s and 40s. The residents have lived there for up to 16 years. 

Dianne Lovan, a board member and parent of a resident at Alderhouse, said she was unable to comment on the situation because of ongoing negotiations with the port.

“The only thing that I’m going to say is that we built this home because our children wanted to live together with their friends and it would not be our choice to lose their home and have to start over again,” she said. “It’s their home; it’s their family.”

Lovan said the parents responsible for the idea came up with the concept so that if something happened to one of the resident’s parents, the residents would still have a place to call home. 

The Foundation For the Challenged originally discussed purchasing Alderhouse, but are now only responsible for helping the residents find other housing, Lovan said.

A call to the person working with Alderhouse through the Foundation For the Challenged was not returned by press time.

Alderhouse has struggled financially in the past, with parents and board members speaking out in a 2006 article in The Chronicle. Lovan said that while Alderhouse awaited a nonprofit exemption, it owed $15,000 in back taxes, but not all of that was required to be paid once the exemption was approved. The organization still owes money in relation to a flood tax, and Lovan said Alderhouse would have it paid by the end of the month. 

According to Kyle Heaton, executive director of the port, the port will continue its negotiations with Alderhouse. He said if talks go smoothly, eminent domain will not be used.

“I don’t see it going to trial or court,” Heaton said, adding that both sides have been communicating for almost a year in a friendly nature.

If the property is acquired through eminent domain, the port will offer fair market value for the property, something Lovan said was not enough to move the residents elsewhere.



Lovan said the options for Alderhouse include the construction of a new building, or the purchase of two houses that would then be renovated to suit the needs of the residents. 

“The ideal situation would be to find a safe location on the bus route,” Lovan said. “(The residents) have jobs, they all work … they need to be able to access their work easily and still be the family unit they’ve formed.”

 

The Port of Centralia held a public hearing on Jan. 20 on the proposed property acquisition. No members of the public attended the meeting. Lovan said Alderhouse did not know the hearing was scheduled. Heaton, on the other hand, said parties involved were notified through mail of the impending hearing. The meeting was also included as a legal notice in The Chronicle, which previewed the meeting in an edition last week. 

During the public comment portion of the port’s regular meeting on Wednesday, Paul Crowner was the only one to speak in regard to Alderhouse.

Crowner is not associated with Alderhouse, but he questioned the port’s use of eminent domain, stating the procedure is typically utilized to facilitate transportation, supply water, establish public parks, preserve places of historic interest or to promote beautification.

“It is less clear if eminent domain can be used so profit-making businesses can make money,” Crowner said in regard to Centralia Station.

Heaton previously told The Chronicle the parcels, located in the road right of way, would need to be acquired to improve property flow to Centralia Station and the city of Centralia.

Port commissioners unanimously approved the resolution without discussion at the port’s meeting on Wednesday. A copy of the resolution was not made immediately available to The Chronicle. 

Heaton said the port’s attorney needed to see it first, though it was already approved by the commissioners. 

The Chronicle has filed a public records request to obtain the resolution pertaining to the acquisition of property.