Arson and neglect as a redevelopment tactic

I have a bad habit of watching CSI: Miami. It's not that great, and it sure makes Miami seem dangerous, not to mention misrepresents the etiology of murder there, but it lets me deaden my mind. Last night a repeat focused on misuse of eminent domain authority. To get a street designated blighted, a developer paid someone to commit crimes on the street, to be able to show rapidly rising crime rates.

So it's interesting to see this paragraph:

Some town residents are saying the fire could actually help to speed up Main Street redevelopment. Many of the burnt buildings were decades old, and the area had been slated for an overhaul.

From a story in Canada's National Post, "Huge fire sweeps through Wasaga Beach."

Firefighters battle a monstrous fire on the main drag at Wasaga, Ontario early in the morning of Friday, Nov. 30, 2007. (Photo: Matt Whittley)

Also see the past blog entry, "Arson as a(nother) redevelopment strategem."