In most eminent domain cases, landowners fight city hall when their property is in the path of a public works project. But the four Abumayyaleh brothers, who own Cup Foods and other businesses at 38th Street and Chicago Avenue in Minneapolis, want a judge to order the city to buy them out.
In a new lawsuit, the business owners at George Floyd Square are demanding that the city of Minneapolis take over their property through eminent domain.
They say operating there has become increasingly difficult since George Floyd's murder in 2020.
The brothers allege that the concrete barricades the city left up for a year created “severe economic hardship” by cutting off traffic, and that the “abandonment of law enforcement in the area” led to a spike in violent crime.
The city has yet to file a response to the litigation.
It comes after a judge in September dismissed a previous lawsuit by the brothers in which they sought more than $1.5 million.