Paragon Tattler November 19, 2006
City of Dollars
A hero is losing his home to the city's greed
In Paragon City, heroes fight for justice every day on behalf of those who cannot defend themselves. The hero Spackle, accomplished healer and Hero of the City, recently returned from a six-month leave of absence to find that his home of over
two years is being sold out from under him, without his knowledge or consent. And he doesn't even get the money that it sold for.
Paragon City claims the right to take Spackle's home and compensate him as little as possible, according to the property
value the city itself assigns. And what does Paragon City intend to do with the building that Spackle restored with his own hands? It will be demolished in a matter of days to make way for construction of a privately owned business, the latest
expansion of Wentworth's Auction Houses.
"This just ain't fair," was Spackle's statement. "Sure the city says it's all legal and proper, all the t's crossed, but laws or not it don't seem right from where I'm standing."
Spackle holds a protest sign on his rooftop.
He is standing on a wide sun deck atop his own roof, wearing his distinctive blue-and-white battle armor and carrying a hand-painted protest sign. A half-dozen fellow heroes have joined him, most with signs of their own. There's enough firepower gathered on this rooftop to take on anything Portal Corps has to offer, and here they are sitting on patio chairs in
south Steel Canyon. The battle they're here to fight is not one that can be won by show of arms.
Faultline at present, left, and with new construction, right.
The principle of 'Eminent Domain' gives a city or state the legal right to claim private property for public purposes, even if the
owner objects, so long as just compensation is paid. The intention was to allow a city to claim derelict or destroyed property, such as that in Overbrook (now commonly known as Faultline), and begin the process of rebuilding while paying the owners for their loss. Seizure of property destroyed in the Rikti War enabled our city to reconstruct its transit system from the ruins of the Yellow and Red Lines, as well as to create the many greenspaces, statues and parks that make Paragon City famous
But Spackle's property, while far from glamorous, is neither derelict nor destroyed. His building is currently home to nine
heroes in good standing in addition to Spackle himself, ranging from long-term residents to newly-fledged warriors just out of
Hero Corps dormitories.
One such youngster, a strapping delphinoid known as Melonhead, proudly displayed to this reporter the customized saltwater pool and filtration equipment that Spackle installed in his ground-floor apartment. "It's difficult for an Aquatic-American to find comfortable housing in town, even though Paragon is on the coast," explained Stay, Spackle's brother and fellow resident. "Aquatics either have to provide their own facilities, at great personal expense, or stay in housing intended for dryland residents, which are often inadequate for their needs. Before Melonhead came to live with us, he had been living in the swimming pool of a Hero Corps training facility, which gave him a terrible case of chlorine dermatitis." It won't be easy for Melonhead to find new quarters on such short notice. He may have to relocate to the heavily trafficked, octopus-infested waters of Independence Port - the Aquatic-American equivalent of living beneath an overpass.
Artist's concept of the proposed Wentworth's Steel Canyon branch.
Paragon City intends to demolish the homes of Melonhead, Spackle, Stay and others, ostensibly for the public good. But the city's plan for this land is not to build a school or a park or even public housing. Plans on file in City Hall indicate that the city intends to sell Spackle's property to a private company, Wentworth's Auction Houses, so that Wentworth's can expand its
business. How can the city justify taking of a citizen's property for the sake of private profits, in the name of public interest?
"The deal is not yet a matter of public record, since the sale has not actually been made yet," says Dr. Susan Veil, a scientist
and researcher formerly of D.A.T.A. "But I would be very surprised if Wentworth's does not pay far more for the property than the city offered in fair compensation to Spackle." According to the letter of notice sent to Spackle last week, his home on a one-block lot in south Steel Canyon, minutes from the University and Yellow Line, with sweeping views to north and west, is worth merely $150,000. That won't even buy a studio condominium in the area's tight housing market. City Hall land use officials refused to comment, except to repeat that the city stood by its valuation. Wentworth's Auction Houses could not be
reached for comment.
Map of the location claimed by the city.
It's clear that the 'public good' in this case means profiting from the official and legal theft of a citizen's property. The sheer
pettiness of this action is difficult to comprehend. The value of one small parcel of land is less than a rounding error in
Paragon City's $30 billion annual budget, but to Spackle it represents two years of his life - two years spent risking his very life in service to this city. Every hero that owns property here should take notice of how much Paragon City values their rights when there's a quick buck to be made.
"I'm sure this Wentworth fellow's a fine upstanding guy," says Spackle. "But it seems like he could go looking for somebody
that actually wants to sell." He says the property was condemned when he bought it from the city in 2004, and he's brought it up to code and paid taxes on it ever since. "This here is my place, by any measure you care to name. And I love this city but they ain't got the right to take it from me."
Spackle has requested a hearing to challenge the seizure of his property. Until he gets a chance to speak his piece, this Hero
of the City will be cooling his heels on the roof of his home, wielding a homemade sign and waiting for the bulldozers to come.
Spackle stands guard as night falls.
Hey heroes!
This is Battledancer! I'm sending out this email message because there are
some citizens of Paragon City that need YOUR help. I've worked with several
of you in the last few months, and I know that you're the kind of people
that we can depend on. The difference this time is that it's also a fellow
hero that is in trouble. As we patrol our neighborhoods in P.C.
we hear people talking, so I know that some of you have heard of Spackle.
For those of you that haven't, he's a registered hero (and empath) that's
battling a grave miscarriage of justice!
His home (a building in Steel Canyon near my patrol route) is scheduled for
demolition to make way for some new Wentworth building! Now this is a hero
that has selflessly placed himself in harm's way time and again to help our
embattled city. I know you might be asking yourself "Wait, Dancer! He's not
entitled to special privileges! He's a hero, but also a citizen and must
abide by the rules." I accept that as valid, however, I'm not asking for
special privilege here. This building is in a part of the Canyon that's
seen its share of trouble. Spackle helped turn that around and make that
neighborhood safer through his presence. But now, this corporate goliath
has stepped in to force this sale without even giving the neighborhood or
its resident hero a fair chance to speak out!
This is where we come in! I'm standing here, typing this to you on my
laptop at a protest rally to bring awareness to this injustice. We need
you, the neighborhood defenders of P.C. to raise your voices. I know that
we get busy, and that what we do can often weigh heavily upon us. I know
that at the end of the day, small things seem like they can wait, but I
implore you not to let this one wait. I know you're all the kind of
spirited people we need to right this wrong.
So by now you're asking "Dancer... What exactly do you want me to DO?" Just
take a minute and write to City Hall, and to the Paragon Times. It can even
be the same letter sent to both places. But write in your own words,
however brief, and tell them that you think this is wrong. Tell them that
you're a registered hero, you feel that the rights of a neighborhood are being
threatened by corporate rush and a willingness to be silent. That's all.
We just need people to KNOW what's going on. I can't imagine that our
fellow citizens and our city government will fail to act once they realize
that this is wrong!
Help me heroes! It's a fight all of us can contribute to against a wrong
every bit as important as those we see every day on the streets!
-D
The rally on Monday night
(( Thanks to Willowisp for writing this! The start of this storyline, Spackle's phone calls, can be found here as well as on the Victory forum here . Spackle's building is directly east of the university in Steel Canyon - map to follow. -Spack))