Eminent domain battle pits New Jersey property owners against city
Some neighbors in Perth Amboy, New Jersey say they're being pushed out for bigger developments. The accusation comes after the city condemned two properties and is now seizing them using eminent domain.
Those property owners, however, say they are fighting back.
Tire shop has been a Perth Amboy staple for 40 years
Quick Tire has been serving the people of Perth Amboy for generations. Still, the work never gets old.
"It's my life," manager Mario Odllakoff said.
Odllakoff has worked there for more than 20 years. His son, Mikhail, is right there beside him.
"The city is becoming very, I would say, unprofessional, I guess, to us," Mikhail Odllakoff said.
They say they got a notice from the city last year, informing them that the building sits too close to the street. Then, earlier this month, they say the city council voted to condemn the tire shop and the four-family residential building next door.
Both lots sit next to a piece of land that developers are planning to use for construction of a large warehouse.
"There's four families that are here," building owner Honey Meerzon said.
Meerzon, who bought the apartment building in 2016, said she believes the city just wants to use eminent domain to make room for bigger developments.
"It hurts me because I'm a normal human being who got on her feet. This is an investment for me. This is a way to show my children, 'Hey, you can go from nothing and really build and save and make something of your life.'"
Ma Rosa Garcia, who has lived in the building for at least 10 years, told CBS News New York in Spanish she has no place else to go.
"They don't really care about the smaller guys"
Management at the tire shop says it has looked for a new location to move the business, but has had no luck. After serving the community for 40 years, the Odllakoffs say they feel like the city turned its back on them.
"They don't really care about the smaller guys, a smaller business like this. They just want big developers," Mikhail Odllakoff said.
The property owners said they're planning on suing the city this week to try and keep what's theirs.
CBS News New York reached out to Perth Amboy's mayor and city council president for comment, but did not immediately hear back.
