The city of Shawano is looking at reviving its dormant Redevelopment Authority to target long-vacant downtown buildings with tough measures that could go as far as invoking eminent domain.
The Common Council on Wednesday unanimously approved a feasibility study to research what tools might be available to the Redevelopment Authority to address those buildings and whether it would be worthwhile to put that board back in place.
The city disbanded its Redevelopment Authority a number of years ago after the board decided there was little to be done to force action on the downtown’s blighted, vacant buildings.
City Administrator Brian Knapp said that conclusion might have been the result of a misunderstanding of the law.
Knapp said there was a Supreme Court ruling that limited government use of eminent domain, which allows governments to expropriate private property for public use, with payment of compensation.
Subsequent court cases have clarified that ruling to show that the limitations were mainly on the taking of residential property and don’t apply to commercial properties, Knapp said.
“We don’t know exactly yet, whether or not this is going to be worth doing, which is why the feasibility study is the first thing to do,” Knapp said.
The council approved an agreement with Madison-based planning consultant Vierbicher to do a feasibility study at a cost of $1,900.
Should the study conclude that there is sufficient reason for the Redevelopment Authority to be reinstated, Vierbicher would establish a redevelopment area within the city at a cost of $13,900.
The project would be paid for with funds from the city’s tax incremental finance districts.
“I think we should look forward to this with a lot of optimism,” said Alderman Fred Ponschok, noting that the vacant buildings have been a problem for years. “I’d like to see this go forward.”
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