I’ve read this story several times from the San Gabriel Valley (Calif.) Tribune, and I think I now have a grasp on it. It deals with a historic Route 66 restaurant called Rod’s Grill, a car dealership and the residents of Arcadia, Calif.
Rusnak Mercedes-Benz wanted the city to seize property on which Rod’s Grill sat so the dealership could expand. Rod’s Grill fought back. The battle apparently became such a headache for Rusnak that it’s willing to expand its dealership around Rod’s.
In the meantime, voters made a choice last Tuesday about two local initiatives on the ballot that affected Rod’s and Rusnak.
The first referendum was Measure A, which would have outlawed automobile sales in a certain block. That would have put the kibosh on the dealership’s motivation to seize Rod’s. However, banning the sale of a certain type of merchandise in a specific location sounded ill-advised enough to voters that they soundly defeated it by a 3-to-1 margin.
Measure B bans the use of eminent domain in the aforementioned redevelopment area. That measure overwhelmingly passed. You’d think the owner of Rod’s Grill, Manny Romero, would be happy about Measure B’s passage. But he’s not. He claims that Measure B is so flimsily written that it will be struck down in court. And Rusnak already has acquired the land it needs for a partial expansion.
Although I’m on Romero’s side, he should be a bit more grateful for small victories. And I think Rusnak would be wise to cut its losses, settle for a partial expansion and leave Rod’s Grill alone.