Illinois statutes do not clearly spell out what municipalities are allowed to do and what alternatives property owners have when the power of eminent domain is brought to bear in any situation.

The way it is now, the property owner is clearly at a disadvantage. This levels the playing field.

This will not be allowed, because it would spell the end of the free market as we know it,

We did not want to deter economic development, so the difficult thing about this [bill] is striking that balance between economic needs and property owners' rights.

Toward the tail-end of last year, a lot of property owners saw pricing they may not see again for a long time, or have never seen before, and they viewed it as an opportunity to sell at what may be the peak in the market.

We are trying to get (property owners) out far enough so they have reasonable access to the water but not so far they are building excessive encroachments into this public resource. It is the minimum necessary to provide reasonable access,