The Carrboro Board of Aldermen could be running out of time if it wants to purchase the contentious Collins Crossing Apartment Homes development on Jones Ferry Road.
The board first discussed in January the possibility of buying the complex, using the eminent domain clause of the Constitution, as a way to preserve affordable housing — but a proposed amendment to the North Carolina Constitution could threaten its authority to do so.
Aldermen have said they want to protect Collins Crossing residents from unfair practices, including rising rents and the failure of the complex’s management to take care of stairwells.
Aspen Square Management, the management company for Collins Crossing, could not be reached for comment Monday.
In January, the N.C. General Assembly drafted House Bill 8, which would prohibit governments from purchasing private property except for public use, such as to create a parking lot.
North Carolina’s current statute states that private property may also be purchased for public benefit — as would be the case with Collins Crossing — but House Bill 8 would remove that ability.
The amendment will be voted on in a statewide referendum on Nov. 4, 2014.
Mike Brough, the town attorney for Carrboro, said the language of the proposed amendment is confusing, and its impact is not yet clear.
“It raises the question as to whether or not the government can only condemn property if the public is going to use it,” he said.
