- The City of Tallahassee attorney is expected to bring up using eminent domain against a proposed Circle K development in the Canopy neighborhood.
- The item was removed from the agenda per the request of the city attorney who now says she wanted to have more time with the issue.
- Neighbors are planning to show up in solidarity to a scheduled commission meeting June 11.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
City commissioners are expected to continue discussions on using eminent domain to stop a Circle K from coming to the Canopy neighborhood.
The item was removed from the agenda last month.
Now, some neighbors like Colleen and Frank Taylor are nervous a decision could be made.
“I just feel like discussions since then have been a lot more variable,” Colleen said.
ABC 27 has been following the story since last year when developers first proposed the gas station in 2024.
Neighbors began raising concerns since then until city commissioners proposed looking into eminent domain.
The city attorney removed the topic from the agenda last month, telling ABC 27's Brieanna Smith in a statement she wanted more time with the agenda item.
Her office has advised the commission against eminent domain.
“Because it does not appear there is a public necessity in this case, I do not think that the city will be successful in an eminent domain procedure“ City Attorney Amy Toman said during an April commission meeting.
Now, Circle K’s attorneys warn that moving forward could cost the city millions.
But neighbors say their concerns go beyond legal risks.
“I have two daughters. I have a three-year-old and 12-year-old girl, and they play outside a lot… just the safety of just having hazardous materials that close to the people we're raising,” Colleen and Frank Taylor said.
Colleen’s home, she says, is just a few feet away from the proposed pumps.
Other neighbors tell Smith they’ve measured it to be 58 feet away from homes.
“We’ll be less than a pitcher’s mound from the gas pumps to the homes,” Gregory Yordon, another neighbor, said.
They’re also raising concerns about crime, home insurance, mortgages, and wildlife, and they’re hoping commissioners and even the company will listen.
“We know they can, and we’re praying they do the right thing,” Sharon Yordon said.
“It’s my hope that Circle K would also understand our plea,” Debra Wilson, another resident, said.
The city attorney says she’s expecting to bring the issue back up to commissioners at the June 11 meeting, and neighbors are planning to do what they did last time: show up in solidarity and in blue.
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