Deal reached in years-long eminent domain case

From SignOnSanDiego.com: "A vacant lot that once housed a thriving downtown San Diego cigar shop – and stands as a reminder of some of the evils of government taking people's land – looks set to finally become a four-star hotel. The dispute reaches back to 2004 when the city used eminent domain to take Ahmad Mesdaq's Gran Havana Cigar & Coffee Lounge in order to assemble land for a Gaslamp hotel developer."

A few things jump out of this article:

1. This was a classic example of a small business being confronted with the specter of "taking on city hall."

2. The dispute wasn't solved overnight -- it took nearly four years.

3. The land wasn't taken from the property owner to build a bridge, school, road or for some other legitimate public use. From the article: "The city condemned the corner parcel in 2004 to make way for a Marriott Renaissance hotel."